Nyx (RWBY)
by Forfrysning
Summary: Based on the RWBY series. Nyx is a reckless winged faunis girl attending the Academy, but she is keeping faunis identity a secret. All those around her believe her to be a shy and quiet girl. After one small slip up, her faunis heritage is thrown out into the open and Nyx is forced to cope with the discrimination that has plagued faunis for generations.
1. Chapter 1

Nyx

Chapter 1

Sunlight streamed through the half closed blinds, banishing what little darkness remained in the room. Four occupied beds, bunk beds to be exact filled the room, and in each one was someone swimming in their subconscious. Most dreaming of faraway lands and treasure, but one was having a nightmare. This was painfully noticeable from the thrashing she was doing in her bed, with the covers now on the floor, and the pillow nowhere to be seen. The most interesting aspect of her was the bright white wings attached to her back as she continued to thrash in her sleep.

The silence was broken by the siren like noise blasting from the alarm clock. Nyx's eyes snapped open and the alarm was cut off abruptly, with a dagger sticking out of its face. Nyx sat up and hugged her knees to her chest, shivering and remembering the nightmare again. It happened too often, this dream. She would be doing her everyday activities with her team, and everything would be going good. Then she would have one small slip up and they would find out. Her team would see her for who she truly was. They would ignore her, be disgusted by her… hate her. It wasn't an unfounded fear; she had seen it happen to other Faunis. Poor souls who had been thrown out of their rooms and teams, ignored by all their friends just because of a single difference, and usually ended up leaving the school. It was hard trying to hide who you really were. Trying to pretend you were human. Nyx looked down at the scraps of clothing around her. What little remained of her shirt lay scattered around her, and her wings were exposed for all to see.

The icy hand of panic wrapped its claws around her heart as she looked at her slowly rousing roommates. In a flash she was out of her bed, across the room and in the closet, slamming the door shut behind her. She grabbed one of her thick bulky shirts and shrugged it over her head. This was a constant argument between her and her roommates. They were always trying to convince her to wear something more… girly. All the clothes they pushed at her failed to successfully hide her wings though, so she would refuse each one as politely as possible. Saying she was too shy to wear clothing like that. Truth was Nyx would love to dress like that. To be able to relax for once, but every aspect of her life to this point was based on hiding her true self from others. She would always keep her long blond hair in a tight bun, her sparkling blue eyes hidden behind a set of dull brown contact lenses, and the most important; her wings hidden.

Nyx sat huddled on the closet floor, once again hugging her knees to her chest, her heart trying to punch a hole in her chest. The first tear streaked down her cheek as the closet door opened and Autumn walked in, sighing.

"Another nightmare?" Nyx's roommates were well acquainted with her nightmares, but she refused to tell them the source of them. Autumn sat down next to Nyx and pulled her into a hug, and Nyx buried her tear streaked face into Autumn's bright red hair. When Nyx had first met the girl, she mistook her for a Faunis because of her hair. Faunis were physically identified by three traits. The most obvious was what set them apart from society, and the basis of the hatred they received, was usually in the form of animal ears, a tail, or wings. The other ways of identifying them was from odd natural hair color and very bright colored eyes.

The older girl patted Nyx's head. "You completely shredded up your sheets you know… guess we're going to have to go into the town again this weekend. We also need a new alarm clock." She reached behind her and held up a small white throwing knife. "You really need to stop throwing these at the alarm clock. There is a snooze button for a reason you know."

Nyx took back the knife, not making eye contact and still not saying a word. Autumn looked sadly down at her.

"Nyx… I really think you should talk about these nightmares of yours. If not to us, then to a professional…"

Startled, Nyx looked up. "N-No! I can't, I- I mean I don't need to!" Autumn looked down at Nyx like a disappointed mother.

"You do. They just keep getting worse. Come." Autumn stood up and dragged the bedraggled Nyx to her feet and out the door into their room. "Look."

The room looked like a tornado had formed inside of it. Her shredded bed sheets were all over the place, previously folded clothes had been thrown everywhere, and her bunk bed was tipped over, with a voice coming from under it.

"Help! Autumn? Um… little help?"

"I got ya Lyric." Autumn lifted up the bed a little, allowing Lyric to crawl out. The girl stood, brushing the dust off her clothes.

"Wow! What happened? Did Nyx have another nightmare?" Lyric looked at Nyx with concern.

Nyx was suddenly shoved forward, slamming her head on the overturned bed, sinking to the floor as her vision began to black out. Whise stood above her, a scowl decorating her face. "This is the third time this week! If it wasn't bad enough listening to you screaming in your sleep EVERY NIGHT, now we have to wake up to you destroying the room?!" Nyx curled into a ball on the floor, willing her vision to return to normal. Autumn stepped in between the two.

"Leave her alone! I understand you're upset about this, but we're a team. Nyx needs our help and we can't just keep pretending that nothing's wrong!" Autumn pulled Nyx to her feet.

"Fine! But stop trashing the room! This isn't some Faunis hovel!" Nyx clamped her mouth shut to keep from responding with the angry retort on the tip of her tongue. Instead she simply looked away and nodded. Her mouth had gotten her in trouble before, and she was not about to let it expose her secret. This wasn't the first time Whise had made a comment about Faunis. The first time, Nyx's heart had just about exploded, fearing that the girl knew her secret, but after time being in the same team with Whise, Nyx had come to discover that the girl had a troubled past with renegade Faunis extremists. This was precisely why Nyx worked so hard to keep her secret.

Autumn stared right into Nyx's eyes. "We ARE having that talk later today. You're not getting out of it this time."

Lyric grabbed her stuff and began to push them all towards the door. "Come on! We're going to be late for class." Nyx let herself be pulled forward towards their first class; trying to think of ways to get out of this "talk" Autumn was so keen on making her do.

They entered their first period and took their seats in the front, much to Nyx's dismay. Being in the front usually meant being used for demonstration. The topic today was cross weapons training, or fighting opponents with varying weapons and learning the strengths and weaknesses each weapon held.

The professor walked in and immediately called on her and one other. "Nyx, Thrash. Up here please." Nyx walked forward keeping her head down. Thrash sauntered up, resting his enormous greatsword on his shoulder as if it weighed nothing.

"Very good. Now for today's lesson, small weapons verses large-" The professor stopped and stared at Thrash's blade. "Um I mean enormous weapons. You two will spar using the lessons from the previous class. Remember to focus on the strengths and weaknesses of your individual weapons... Thrash, please go easy on her." Thrash grinned, an evil glint in his eye, and nodded to the professor, although he really didn't look as if he was going to heed the professor's request.

During sparing, Nyx would usually pull her attacks, and really work at not standing out. Faunis were known to be extremely competitive, something that had developed from years of discrimination. She would make it so she almost never won, usually getting in a few good strikes but ultimately allowing the opponent to get the final strike on her. They always trained with blunted weapons, but they could still easily break bones.

Thrash stepped to the center and hefted his giant piece of metal, easily holding it in his hands, and waited for her to get ready. Nyx walked toward the center of the room, twin daggers appearing in her hands, and looked at Thrash's greatsword rather conflicted. On one hand she needed to keep up her disguise, and being able to stand up to Thrash in combat would defiantly get her noticed. On the other hand, she really didn't want to get hit by that thing. She stepped up to Thrash and held her weapons at the ready.

Before she could come to a decision, Thrash launched forward and slamming his sword into her weapons, scattering them across the room, and was turning his momentum into a second attack aimed at her head. On pure instinct, Nyx rolled backwards, pushing off her hands and flipping back to her feet, leaving Thrash staggering.

Nyx quickly took this opportunity to reclaim her daggers. In the background, the professor was yelling something at them, but she was too busy trying to keep her body in one piece to care.

Thrash rushed at her again, a primal scream ripping itself from his throat. Nyx dived to the side, landing hard on her back and crawling away from him again. Thrash walked slowly towards her this time, blocking all escape routes, while swinging the sword in lazy circles.

"No escaping this time Nyxy. Come on, use those tooth picks of yours. I dare ya." Nyx's eyes narrowed and she stood up. Oh this wasn't good. He challenged her. I mean sure, she really needed to keep up her disguise as weak little Nyx… but on the other hand, he challenged her… and she was really itching to be on the winning side for once. A small dangerous smile began to spread across her face.

In the audience, Autumn tensed. They had seen this smile before, on rare occasions. It usually made itself known before Nyx did something crazy and outright dangerous. Autumn began to really worry when she noticed the slightly crazed look in Nyx's eye.

Nyx sauntered up to Thrash, hips swaying, the smile growing on her face, and her twin daggers held in an unworried manner. A look of confusion crossed Thrash's face, and he brought his great sword into the guard position, wary for any tricks. Instead of attacking him she began to walk past him, ignoring him completely. Thrash was dumbfounded, and not knowing what else to do, looked to the professor for guidance.

In one smooth movement, Nyx spun and swept Thrash's legs out from under him. She stood up and dusted herself off even as he hit the floor with a thud. She looked at him with pity. "Oh, sorry about that. I didn't see you there."

Thrash growled in rage and clambered to his feet and attacked her. To be honest, Nyx was rather impressed with how fast he could swing his sword, but in the end it was still a greatsword, and as small as she was, she had the gift of agility on her side. She shifted to the side slightly, and Thrash's massive sword split through the air inches from her. The sword clanged off the floor. Instead of trying to pull back the greatsword for a counter attack, Thrash threw his body weight forward, intending on bulling over Nyx. Instead, she planted a hand on his shoulder and vaulted over him. She winced as his hand dragged across her scalp, yanking her hair, as he tried to grab hold of her. She landed in a roll and came up, her bright blond hair pulled out of its tight bun and streaming down to her waist.

Nyx grinned at Thrash and streaked forward, all thoughts of staying under the radar vanishing. Thrash only had time to look shocked before she was upon him. She feinted left, and then spun to the right, stabbing him with her blunted dagger. He tried to counter, but she ducked under his sword long before it reached her. She rolled behind him, slashing at his ankles then catapulting into the air, flipping over his stumbling body, and slamming the hilt of her dagger into his temple, causing an explosion of spots to shoot across Thrash's vision.

The class stared at the fight in absolute awe. It was well known that Thrash was the bully of the school, on top of being a competent fighter. Nyx, in comparison was that shy quiet girl that no one ever really noticed. Several of the students were staring at her, jaws wide open, not daring to blink. Who was this girl and what had she done with Nyx? This girl was flowing through Thrash's attacks without a second though, counter attacking with perfect precision, and grinning evilly all the while.

Thrash staggered back, trying to ward off the incoming attacks unsuccessfully with his greatsword. This was its weakness. While the greatsword could deliver devastating blows, when it came to blocking, it was ill suited. Thrash tried one last desperate swing at the tornado formally known as Nyx. His sword once again passed through thin air as she drove in close slamming her dagger into several pressure points in his arm causing him to drop the sword before slashing savagely at his neck with her blade.

Thrash collapsed to the floor, holding his bruised throat from where the blunted blade had slammed into it, trying to will air to go into his lungs. Nyx stepped back, a self-satisfied smirk on her face, she turned her back to the coughing Thrash and once again faced the class.

The class stared back in shock, with eyes wide, mouths agape, and the professor's coffee spilling out of the mug he was holding. Nyx's feeling of triumph was short lived as the cold hand of fear once again seized her heart. A deep blush settled on her face as she realized what had just happened, and her daggers slipped from her hands, clattering to the floor. The bell chose the perfect time to ring, and Nyx made a hasty exit, disappearing into the crowd in the hallway.

Talking exploded in the room. No one could believe what had happened. A few of Thrash's friends went to help him, but he pushed them away with a snarl and stormed from the room. Autumn and her roommates looked at each other in shock, and quickly gathered Nyx's bag and daggers, before running into the hallway.

"Where did she go?" Autumn asked.

"Wow! Did you see that! I didn't know she could fight like that!" Lyric was practically bouncing with excitement.

"That was quite unexpected. I want to know where she learned to tumble like that. Come on, she probably ran to our next class." Whise led the way down the hall.

As it turned out, Nyx wasn't at their next period, or any of the remaining classes that day. Gossip spread like wildfire across the school campus. What astounded so many wasn't the fact that Thrash had been beaten. He was good, but he was far from the best. No, what astounded so many was how Nyx was the one to beat him. Nyx, the girl that was so remarkable at remaining unremarkable in the eyes of her peers.

As each hour passed with no sign of Nyx, her team began to become more worried about her. It was late, and as much as Autumn wanted to keep looking for her teammate, she was forced to call a halt to the search for the night. Autumn, Lyric and Whise stumbled into their room and collapsed onto their beds, exhausted after a day of trekking all over campus looking for the missing Nyx.


	2. Chapter 2

Nyx

Chapter 2

Nyx faded through the crowded hallway like a ghost, weaving through the foot traffic as if it was nothing but smoke. She could hear the voices of her team calling out to her, but the only thought on her mind was to get away. The bell to the next class rung and the crowd began to disperse. Once the last person disappeared from sight, Nyx broke into a run. In her mind, the scene with Thrash replayed over and over again, refusing to give her any reprieve. She didn't know how far she ran, but eventually stopped, gasping for breath. The Faunis looked around, trying to get her bearings, but totally lost in an unknown part of the school. Her wings twitched under her bulky sweater, begging for release, and her eyes were drawn to the large windows right next to her.

No… no this was a bad idea. She had very nearly exposed her secret not once but twice today and it wasn't even lunch yet! Her wings twitched some more, and she thought about the peace of simply escaping into the sky. It had been over a month since the last time she had flown, and in the previous days, she had already begun to go stir crazy from being grounded for so long.

Nyx sighed in defeat and walked forward, pushing the window open and looking down at the 30 story drop below her. She took a deep breath and simply leaned forward, letting gravity do the rest. She hadn't realized she had closed her eyes, snapping them open at the same times she pulled the sweater over her head.

The wind rushed past her, trying to catch her still closed wings, and the ground swam up at a dizzying speed. A small smile graced her lips and for the first time in a month, she was truly happy.

Nyx snapped her bright wings open and was caught in the air current's loving embrace, throwing her downward momentum into forward thrust. She streaked through the air, her feet brushing the leaves of the trees below her, as she zoomed further and further into the forest surrounding the school.

She could hear the growling of the monsters inhabiting the forest below her. They could sense, smell, and see her as she flew over their territory, but she paid them no mind. The creatures of the forest were mostly ground ridden, and the ones who could take to the skies were few and far between.

The miles disappeared under the power of her wings, the air currents doing nothing to hinder of escape from everything that she knew, and just to get lost into the sky. She could see the mountains in the distance, looming giants towering over the forest, beckoning her onward and promising solace and freedom. All thoughts had left her mind, just responding to her instincts, dancing from one air current to the next. No longer did she have to worry about keeping her identity a secret. Gone were all fears of being discovered and for the first time in a long time, Nyx could finally be what she was born to be.

Nothing was stopping her, freedom was in her grasp. She could just keep flying, and put this foolish dream of living in civilization to rest. She could just keep flying and be able to fly every day, never having to hide who she was. She could be herself and have to answer to no one… because no one would be there. Suddenly there was something holding her back from flying any further. Where was she flying? What would be waiting there for her? No one. Nyx didn't have any family to fly home to; all she had was her solitude. That was her primary reason for applying at the school.

She had no formal teaching in the sciences or arts, but fighting, that was something she could do. Years of living on one's own gave skills in survival that would make her an ideal student into the Guardian Institute. She had arrived, craving friends, family, anything to strive off the deep sense of loneliness that had set into her heart, and she had found a family or sorts in this team that she had been assigned.

The wind had changed directions, as if trying to tell her to go back. Nyx had fought hard to get this family, and she wasn't going to let one stupid mistake ruin all that hard work. She soared in a wide relaxed half circle, facing the way she had come from, and once again laid on the speed. Leagues passed under her even faster this time, and it was almost no effort at all, using her wings like a sail and letting the wind do most of the work.

The castle came swimming into view, growing larger with each passing second. Night had fallen long ago, and it was just minutes from sunrise. Nyx streaked right through the tall towers of the castle, and circled around the backside. She landed quietly right outside of their window and quickly pulled the bulky sweater back on, once more hiding her wings from prying eyes.

Nyx peered into the room as she slowly opened the window. She could make out the distinct form of her roommates sleeping in their beds. She tiptoed through the near pitch black room to her bed. Hopefully her roommates would sleep in and allow her a few precious hours of sleep, because at the moment she was about to pass out from exhaustion.

The lights snapped on, and light bombarded Nyx's sensitive Faunis eyes. She cringed, blinded and was tackled to the floor from three different sides.

"I got her legs!"

"Who has the rope?"

"I have it, drag that chair over here."

Nyx felt as if she was being pulled in all directions, but she was too exhausted to fight. Her wings ached; she hadn't eaten all day, and had been running on empty for several hours. She whimpered, just wanting to go to sleep. As her roommates began to tie her hands and legs together, she passed out from exhaustion.


	3. Chapter 3

Nyx

Chapter 3

Nyx drifted in absolute silence. There were no dreams to occupy her mind, nor nightmares to cause her strife. Perfect silence and calm bliss. Some part of her knew that she was asleep, but she didn't notice or particularly care. All was good in the world that made up her sleep, but all good things must come to an end. A small buzzing noise filled her ear, as if a greedy mosquito had come to feast on her blood. In her sleep, Nyx frowned, and tried to ignore the sound. The annoying buzz grew into a stream of different sounds, and a few muffled voices.

"I told you to tie her up, not knock her out!"

"That wasn't me, yell at Lyric!"

"Hey, I was just holding her legs!"

Nyx groaned and tried to block out the noise, shifting in her sleep and settling back down. The annoying sound, however, had other plans.

"Hey Nyyyyyyxxx… wake up Nyyyyyxxx… this isn't working. Have any ideas?"

"Have you tried poking her?"

"Yeah, but that didn't wake her up."

"Hey, I have an idea!"

Everything went silent once more, and Nyx smiled, once again seeping lower into her unconscious. Once again, everything was good and-THWAK! Something slapped into her forehead, and clung to her face.

"Nyx, there is a spider on your face!"

A rather girly piercing scream ripped itself out of the sleeping girl's throat as her eyes shot open, blinded by the black mass of creepy death clinging to her face. Nyx screamed louder, thrashing from side to side, and falling to the floor in an uncomfortable position.

"That was so mean!" Autumn said, trying unsuccessfully to suppress a fit of laughter. Nyx's long blond hair cascaded over her eyes, obscuring her vision, but she could make out that the spider was nowhere in sight… she also discovered that she was tied to a tipped over chair. The world righted itself as Whise pulled the chair back up to its original position.

Nyx pulled at her bonds, struggling, then looked up to glare daggers at her roommates. "What are you doing? LET ME GO!"

Lyric smiled at her. "Not till you answer some questions!"

"Yes, like I said, we are going to have this talk… the ropes are just a precaution to make sure you don't run away again." Autumn explained.

Whise stepped forward and grabbed Nyx's shoulders, peering deep into her eyes. "First question. Where did you learn to flip like that, and when did you suddenly become competent at fighting?" Whise's eyes continued to bore into Nyx's. She looked away, hoping Whise hadn't noticed the brown contact lenses she was wearing.

"Um… I just… I guess it was just kinda luck?" Nyx said, trying to dodge the real explanation.

Autumn pulled Whise back, and then turned to look at Nyx. "You're doing it again. Sometimes you act wild and stand up to anyone, but you always switch back to acting shy and quiet almost immediately. It's like you have this dual personality that you try to keep hidden or something!" Nyx didn't make eye contact, refusing to offer any sort of explanation. Autumn sighed. "Ok, let's start with an easier question, and one that you owe all of us. What do you have nightmares about?"

Nyx tensed up. "N-Nothing…"

"If you don't tell us, I'm throwing the spider at you again!" Lyric opened her cupped hands and showed of an enormous black spider. Nyx freaked out and began to thrash again.

"NO! NONONONONO! GET THAT THING AWAY FROM ME!" Lyric took a threatening step towards her. "NO! PLEASE, OK OK, I'LL TELL YOU ANYTHIG, JUST GET IT AWAY!"

Lyric backed away again, Whise simply rolling her eyes. "There, now talk."

Nyx took a deep breath and began to speak. She told her team about her dream of them abandoning her and hating her, but she left out everything regarding her lack of humanity.

Whise smiled at her. "Why would we abandon you? You're our friend… is that all you were screaming about?"

Nyx once again looked away. "…No… I sometimes dream about when my family was murdered…" Her friends froze, staring at her with shock. Nyx had never talked about her past, and they had never asked before this. "Sometimes I dream of being locked in a cage again and this guy about to cut off my wi- um hands…" Nyx's eyes glazed over with tears as she remembered her past. "Or when I lived on the streets, and had to eat out of dumpsters…" Nyx squeezed her eyes shut, refusing to say anymore. Once again, silence filled the room. The three other girls had lived rather comfortable lives, and had always assumed so had Nyx. Not knowing what to say, Whise stepped forward and cut Nyx free from the ropes, pulling the younger girl into a tight hug.

Autumn kept staring at Nyx with wide eyes. She wanted to know more, wanted to understand why all this had happened to her friend, but she had already done too much. They should never have made Nyx tell them, sometimes it was best to let the past be forgotten. Lyric threw the spider out the window then joined the group hug with Autumn and Whise. Nyx stood in the center of her friends, relaxing into their warm embrace.


	4. Chapter 4

Nyx

Chapter 4

"I'm not coming out." Nyx yelled through the door. Autumn and Whise groaned. They had been standing outside the bathroom for fifteen minutes now, trying to convince Nyx to leave her sanctuary.

"We're going to be late, and besides you have to come out sometime." Whise tapped her foot impatiently.

"No… I look stupid." Lyric walked up, holding a few thin pieces of metal in her hand, and got to work on the door lock.

Whise laughed. "No, you look much better! Come on out, everyone's going to love your new style."

Nyx groaned. "I don't want anyone to love my new style…" In the few months that Autumn, Whise, and Lyric had known Nyx, they had never seen her without her hair done up in a tight bun. Whise had finally had enough and decided that she was going to style Nyx's hair, and there was nothing the younger girl could do about it.

"You're being ridiculous. You looked so plain with that boring old bun. You should let your hair down more often, it looks so much better!" Whise exclaimed.

"Yeah, now you might get a boy to notice you!" Autumn said with a grin.

"NO! I don't want anyone to notice me. The bun was to make sure I DIDN'T get noticed!" Autumn rolled her eyes at the bathroom door.

"That was only the first step; next we change your outfit… I was thinking of a nice strapless dress!" Whise winked at Autumn, as they heard Nyx scream in protest from inside.

The latch clicked, and Lyric stood, putting her lock picks away. Whise barged into the room, and emerged dragging a struggling Nyx behind her.

"No! I'm not going out like this!" Autumn bent down to look at Nyx, who had sat stubbornly on the floor.

"You come without a struggle; we'll go into town after class and look at the weapons shops." Nyx immediately stopped pulling, and looked up.

"They don't have anything new."

"A ship from Lycardia came in today. We'll get to look at brand new weapons." Nyx perked up a little bit at that, and Autumn could tell she almost had the girl, just one last thing. "I'll even buy you new daggers." Autumn felt sorry for Nyx, she would spend hours at the weapons stalls, browsing over the exotic daggers, but would never buy any of them. As Autumn had just learned, Nyx had no family to provide for her, no one to pay for her things either. Nyx carried around this pair of mismatched daggers that were on the verge of falling apart.

Nyx jumped to her feet, a happy grin spreading across her face. "Deal! Can we go right after class ends? Oh I wonder if they have any leaf blades." Autumn pushed the excited girl out into the hallway and walked to class with her. Lyric was listening to Nyx prattle on about the different blades she wanted to see, while Whise just smiled and led the way.

As they entered their first class, Nyx underwent another personality transformation. The second she crossed the threshold of the door, she stopped talking excitedly and looked down at the floor, suddenly aware of all the attention she was receiving. Autumn looked around the class and noticed everyone's eyes were focused on the now silent Nyx. Gossip had spread around the school of how she had defeated Thrash in single combat, but that was a few days ago, and the talk had died down by the second day. A sly smile crossed Whise's face, and Autumn realized that the class was intrigued by Nyx's new hair style. It really was a sight to see. Autumn had never seen anyone with hair as bright as Nyx's, and with how it fell all the way down to her waist only helped intrigue the others.

Nyx took her seat, in the middle of Whise and Lyric. She did this in every class in an effort not to talk to anyone. She didn't trust herself around other people. Nyx was the type of person who would jump into a conversation, and could have trouble keeping her mouth shut. None of this helped her keep up her disguise though, so she was content to talk only to those on her team. She could feel the continued stares of her classmates, and it was beginning to freak her out a little. Nyx leaned forward, letting her hair cascade down around her face, effectively blinding her from those around her.

The teacher walked in, humming and happily looked at his class. "Good morning students. Today we are going to do something different." The teacher began to go into his plan for the day. Nyx spaced out, day dreaming of the different weapons she was hoping to acquire. Maybe one of those gun blades that her roommates seemed to like so much.

"-and that is how the Faunis came to gain their equality with us humans. Any questions?" Nyx froze, looking up at the professor. What did he say about equality? Her hand shot into the air, but another student beat her to the punch.

"Yes Taris, what is your question?" The professor looked intrigued. Someone was actually paying attention to his class for once.

"If the Faunis are considered equal, why don't we have any in this school?" Taris asked. Nyx slid down in her seat a little at the question.

"Well… um, that's a good question. Maybe because they never try out for the school…" The professor paled a little as he answered.

"That's not true, I have seen several Faunis apply for this university, and several of them showed far more promise than some of the students here!"

Someone behind Nyx mumbled. "Yeah, like Karden."

The student in question, Karden stood up and bellowed at the kid. "You wanna start something?! Ain't no filthy faunis better at fighting than me!"

The crowd erupted into arguments, and Nyx took a quick peek behind her at Taris. She was still standing, glaring at the class. Nyx had seen the girl around campus before, but had never spoken to her. She had jet black hair, brown eyes and a bow on her head. Nyx watched as the girl sighed in aggravation and slid back into her seat. Nyx turned back around and laid her head on the desk, and slept through the rest of class, amidst the arguments and accusations being thrown around like wildfire.

The rest of her classes passed much more smoothly. No one raised arguments about the Faunis or equal rights, and no one called on her. She made it look like she was paying attention, but in truth; Nyx was day dreaming about what type of weapons she would find at the market.

The end of classes could not come soon enough, and when Nyx and her friends finally left the school grounds, she was practically hopping with excitement. The walk to town was long and uneventful. If she could have, Nyx would have made her friends sprint to town with her. She sighed and looked up at the sky with longing eyes. Today was the perfect day to go flying. The sky was a royal blue with large clouds drifting lazily across the horizon. Her wings began to twitch under her sweater, urging her to spread her wings and become lost in the dancing air currents. Of all the things she had done to keep her identity a secret, not flying was the hardest. She could act like a shy little girl, and keep her wings hidden, but limiting the amount of time she spent in the air was pure torture. There was a time when she had to stay ground ridden for three months due to an injured wing, and she thought she would claw her eyes out. When a winged Faunis stayed grounded for too long they became paranoid and rather… animalistic in their emotions.

The market place was unusually crowded, for a Thursday afternoon. The rest of the city must have had the same idea as Autumn, not wanting the fresh trade goods to be picked over before they got a chance to browse. Nyx's eyes were flicking everywhere, a wide smile on her face. Whise and Lyric left to replenish their ammunition supplies for the gun blades. Autumn handed Nyx a small black card.

"Here, go find some nice new daggers, this will pay for them. I'm going to look for some phoenix fire for my spear." Autumn was slightly startled as the younger girl gave her a quick hug and thanks before disappearing into the crowd.

Nyx browsed the weapons with wide eyes. Every single blade they sold was such higher quality than Nyx's mismatched daggers. Some were a scary dark metal, while others shimmered like a diamond in sunlight. It was hard for her not to buy the first set of daggers she found. The crowd was stifling. Every time she tried to ask one of the traders something, they couldn't hear her, or were too busy helping other customers. She found a pair of thin daggers imbued with everfrost, and shouted for the trader. Of course he was helping another customer.

Nyx resigned herself to wait, hoping no one would purchase them first when her attention was stolen from the daggers. The air had shifted and a very distinct scent filtered past her nose. Nyx turned away from the trader, just as he came to help her, the daggers long forgotten. She flowed through the crowd, drawn every onward by this familiar scent.

The crowds began to thin a little as she approached the one stall with no customer. Behind a table crowded with weapons was a blacksmith, pounding on a length of metal, coaxing what was sure to be a masterpiece from the glowing blade. Nyx stopped at the table, not noticing the array of weapons before her, as her eyes were frozen on the blacksmith. He was a dark skinned southerner, massive and broad of shoulders, with a shaved head. He was shirtless, and she could see the sweat dripping off of him. She felt almost as if she was in a trance, not sure why she had been drawn to him, or why this smell was so familiar. He turned and plunged the glowing blade into a troth of water, and she froze, feeling as if the wind had been knocked out of her.

There folded on his back, exposed for the entire world to see, were two massive black wings. Nyx couldn't help but stare at the wings, tracing the different feathers with her eyes. Winged Faunis were not that common in the Vale. They were more commonly found in the southern deserts such as this Faunis before her, or the far northern mountains, like Nyx.

The wind shifted once again, and the blacksmith froze mid strike. His head snapped around, staring deep into Nyx's eyes. They stayed like that for what felt like forever. His eyes passed over the heavy sweater she was wearing. He put his hammer down and sighed.

"Hatchling." That single word made her feel like a child once again. He turned away and walked into the tent behind him. She looked around to see if her friends were in sight, then snuck into the tent.

Inside, he had his back turned to her, wiping the sweat off with a wet rag. "You hide yourself." She looked down, ashamed. For winged Faunis, it was very shameful to keep your wings covered, even if it was for a good reason. They believed that it was turning your back on your kind. The blacksmith shrugged into a shirt and turned around.

"Come here." He sat in a chair and beckoned her forward. She did so, and he held her chin in his hand, staring into her eyes again. "You even hide your eyes behind false colors. Why do you do thi-" His eyes widened as he inspected the other side of her face. He released her, a sad look passing over his face.

"You have no family, do you?" She took a step back, startled.

"H-How do you know that?" The smith held up a single finger to his left eye. Right below the eye, a small feather was tattooed in, nearly invisible amongst his dark skin.

"Our kind receives the mark on our 11th name day. You have none." He gestured to another stool. "Sit, tell me your story.

She collapsed into the stool, and before she knew it, the words came flowing from her mouth. He listened without interruption, never asking her questions, just sitting there and letting her get it all off her chest. She was grateful, because if he stopped her, she thought she might break down. She told him of her Mother and Father, living in the mountains, trying to stay out of the fighting between the Faunis and Humans. How the humans tracked them to their mountain abode, and put it to the torch. The torture her mother and father endured at the hands of the humans.

Tears began to stream down her face. "And then…. Th-they c-cut their wings- they- with this big rusty sword." She couldn't keep going; she broke down into barely suppressed sobs. The smith settled a thick blanket over her shoulders, and wiped the tears away from her eyes.

"Shhh, they would not have you sad. You have mourned long enough, be happy that you still live." The smith began to prepare a pot of tea. She had never spoken of her past with anyone. No one would listen or even care.

After a while, her tears had dried and the tea was finished. The smith handed her a steaming cup. "Here drink. Tis good for the feathers." Nyx took a deep gulp, wincing as it scalded her throat. The smith chuckled. "Haha, slowly hatchling. Small sips." Nyx blushed and took a smaller sip. Warmth filled her and gave her renewed energy; she looked up and smiled at the smith. He clapped a hand on her shoulder. "And there it is; I have been waiting all afternoon for you to be happy. Now, we have spoken enough of the past, but I must know, why do you live among the humans and not our kind?"

"I could never find any of them. I lived in the forest for two years after my- after that night. When I finally stumbled into a city, I was so relieved, I didn't even care they were human…" Nyx looked down at her cup, lost in memories. "I lived on the streets for the last couple of years… I stole and fought, doing anything I could do to stay fed and warm at night. A few times I would hook up with other Faunis, but on the streets nothing stays consistent. Friends would come and go, just trying to get by."

The smith nodded. "Yes, you need a trade to live with humans." He looked out at his table, still piled high with weapons. "Although this town seems more hostile to our kind than most. It is plain that you are no longer on the streets."

She nodded and explained how she had hidden her wings, hiding her eyes behind false contact lenses, and had joined the Guardian Institute to become a Huntress. The smith nodded his approval. "This is smart move for you. But I still do not approve of this disguise you wear. You pretend to be a shy quiet girl. Our kind is neither shy nor quiet. The disguise will fall." Nyx began to protest, but he held up his hand, silencing her. "No, I am right. It is not a matter of if, but when. When it happens, shed this disguise of yours. Be proud of who you are. Show off your flying, don't hold back in combat, and do not let anyone stop you."

He stood and unfurled his wings. "Come, take off this disguise, and show them to me." Nyx pulled off her bulky sweater, dressed in only a white undershirt, and relaxed her wings with a sigh. She kept them squeezed in tight most of the time, so it was a relief to relax them once in a while. She stayed sitting in the chair as he walked behind her, inspecting her feathers. "You need to preen more often. The feathers are misaligned and dirty. They will get infected… you do know how to preen?"

Nyx blushed. "Of course I do! …it's just hard finding time with my roommates…" she tensed up as he laid his hands on her wings.

"Relax hatchling. You have knots in the muscles. This comes from lack of use. I understand you desire to keep up this disguise, but it is unhealthy." He walked back around and checked outside; making sure no one was around, before turning around with a grin. "I have something I must show you. A little project I have been working on."

He spread his wings to their full extent, showing them off to her. "Tell me hatchling, what do you see?"

"Um… feathers?" the smith laughed loud and deep, pride shining on his face.

"Exactly! Just feathers. Now look closer." Nyx walked forward, leaning over and inspecting his primary feathers. Her eye was drawn to a glint as he shuffled them in the firelight. Her eyes widened as she found what he was showing her. There, clipped to one of his black feathers, was a dark metal blade, shaped to look exactly like a feather. Her eyes traced the rest of his wings and she found that they were on all of his primary feathers and a lot on his secondary.

"You have found them! Ingenious, no?" He unclipped one of the blades from his feathers, holding it up in the light. It was shaped perfectly like the feather it was clipped to. He handed it to her. "Careful, tis very sharp."

She held it in the palm of her hand and looked up with shock. "It weighs almost nothing. How is this possible?"

"They are made of a metal found in my home desert. My people make our armor out of it. There are stronger metals out there, but this can still hold up in battle and is light enough to fly in."

She extended her own wings, clipping the blade to one of her feathers. It was a poor fit and slid off. The smith caught it. "The blades must be custom forged for each of us. When the process is done correctly, they become an extension of the wing. Observe" The smith gave his wings a few hard strikes, and nothing happened. No rattling of metal, no daggers falling out. "With training, you can manipulate the blades." He snapped his wing out, and three knives went flying through the air, impaling them into the wood of the tent post. Nyx was astounded. A wide smile forming on her face.

"Can I have a set? Oh please? I can pay, my friend gave me some money and-" The smith laid a finger on her mouth.

"Silence hatchling. I will not take money that is not yours. We are a proud race, not petty beggars." The smith sat back down on the stool, crossing his arms against his chest, and silence settled over the tent. Nyx became depressed. She really wanted those blades, but had no way of paying for them. She looked down at the floor, letting her hair spill over her face and hiding her to the world. Out of habit, she receded into her shy alter personality. The smith noticed this and raised her chin up to look at him. "No. You will not pretend to be someone else while around me. You are not a shy girl, so enough of the pretending… I will not take money that is not yours, and you have no way of paying… but I might be able to offer you a job…" Nyx's eyes filled with hope. "I have need of someone to man my store front. The humans here are too petty to do business directly to my face, but they still believe you are human. You will sell my weapons, and in return I shall forge you the feather blades." Nyx grinned, jumping up and wrapping him in a hug.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyou! I'll work really hard and do whatever you say and sell everything!" The smith chuckled, a deep throaty sound making his chest shake.

"You will not be thanking me soon I think. It shall be hard work. You will help me at the forge when there are no customers. You will be here for many hours each day, and the work shall push you to the limits at times." He pointed out of the tent. "Go, it is getting late. Be back here tomorrow as soon as your classes are finished."

Nyx gave him one last grin and dashed from the tent, her wings twitching, asking to fly. She slid to a halt, gasping. Her wings! They were still exposed for the world to see. She ducked beneath the table outside and pulled back on her sweater hurriedly. Nyx poked her head above the table and scanned around. It was far later than she had realized, and the market place was all but empty. She breathed a sigh of relief and dashed out of the town, a goofy grin plastered to her face. Buildings streaked by as she sprinted past. She wasn't just running out of town, but towards a new step in her life. Moments later, she was sprinting through the forest back to the Academy. The wind was whistling through the trees like a song of the forest. The sun was almost below the horizon, and the leaves rustled as she streaked past them. Her excitement funneled into a bottomless repository of energy. Time slowed, yet she seemed to speed up at the same time.

Nyx blasted through the forest, trees screaming past, as she soared, flipped and streaked her way through. Her powerful wings working almost as if they had a mind of their own, yet in perfect sync with the rest of her body. Left she would spin around this tree, then immediately banking right to avoid a ticket of saplings. Nothing slowed her down; all obstacles were surpassed with little effort and no loss of momentum.

The Academy appeared before her as she exploded out of the forest. The sun had fully set and the grounds were illuminated by flickering torch light around the walls. It finally dawned on Nyx that she had been flying. She didn't remember nor care that she had lost her sweater at some point in the forest. She was built for flying, and nothing was going to stop her from doing it.

Nyx had spent so many months practicing to be this shy little girl, dead set on fitting in at this school, and not drawing any undue attention to herself. What she failed to recognize was that a few short hours spent with another of her kind had cracked the surface of her false personality, allowing the true one to emerge a little.

Nyx knew it was risky to be flying on school grounds, but at the moment she really didn't care. She felt so full of energy, and all her mind could think about was those feather daggers flying through the air and sinking into the wood. Nyx looped around the tower that she lived in several times, before dive-bombing through her open window.

All the winged girl could hear was several startled yelps as she blasted into the room in a blur and into the closet, the wind created by her passage slamming the door shut behind her. Nyx wasn't able to suppress the giggles as she shrugged into one of her sweaters.

The door was wrenched open by Whise, a look of murder on her face. "What the hell was that!? We have a door for a reason, stop exploding into the room!" Nyx looked at her before collapsing into a fit of laughter. Whise's hair was all over the place, giving the girl the appearance of a hurricane survivor.

Nyx walked out of the room, trying hard not to grin. The room was a mess. Again. Thanks to her. Again. Autumn was helping Lyric out from under the overturned bed.

"Hey, Nyx… you should like totally stop tipping the bed over on me." Nyx smiled apologetically at her roommate.

"Sorry Lyric, I'll try to tone it down…"

Autumn turned to look at her with confusion. "How did you even do that anyways? We live on the 12th floor!"

"I um… I climbed?"

"Well stop doing that! What if you fell?"

Whise approached them, her hair now back to its usual state. "Well are you going to keep us waiting?"

Nyx looked at her confused. "Waiting? What?"

Autumn laughed. "Come on, don't be so forgetful. Show us the weapons you bought! We have been talking about it all day. There were so many things you would have loved."

Nyx handed Autumn back her black card. "I didn't buy anything." Nyx walked to her bed and pulled out her old rusty weapons from the harness under her sweater, placing them on the nightstand.

Her roommates looked at her in shock. "You didn't get anything!? But you were so excited!" Lyric looked at Nyx as if she had grown a second head.

"You mean you are sticking with those rusty old things?" Whise turned her nose to the daggers sitting on the desk.

"I don't understand… I told you it was ok to buy any weapon you wanted…" Autumn looked confused.

Nyx turned to her roommates, a strange look of confidence on her face. "I hail from a proud race, not one of petty beggars!" Nyx turned her back on her stunned roommates and climbed into her bed, signaling the end of the conversation.

Whise, Autumn and Lyric looked at each other in bewilderment, having no idea what just happened, and wordlessly turned in for the night.


	5. Chapter 5

Nyx

Chapter 5

Nyx's eyes snapped open. It was morning and that meant she only had a few more hours to go till she met up with the smith. She tossed the covers back and launched from her bed, smacking the off button on the alarm clock on her way down. The morning passed by in a whirlwind, as she rushed through taking her shower, dressing and yelling at her roommates to wake up.

They grumbled when they found out they still had another hour to sleep in before classes, and tried to go back to sleep. Nyx was having none of that, and three thumps were heard as the girl pulled each of her roommates out of their beds.

Lyric climbed back into her bed and threw one of her many pillows at Nyx, who streaked to the side, avoiding it. "Let me sleep… too early." Nyx stuck her tongue out at her disheveled roommates and vanished out the open door, on her way to get breakfast.

Autumn and Whise were puzzled by Nyx's actions. It was as if the shy girl they had come to know had vanished and was replaced by someone entirely different. No longer was she staying quiet around other people, or trying to stay out of sight. At one point during the day, she became engaged in a furious argument with a professor who was explaining the differences in human and faunis cultures.

"Does Nyx seem… off to you?" Autumn asked Whise while the girl in question continued to argue with the professor.

"Yes. Look at her!" Whise was staring at Nyx.

"I know. I have never seen her argue with… well, anyone!" At this point, the professor was trying to find a way out of the conversation, clearly on the losing end.

"No not that. I didn't have to pester her to let her hair down today. She just did it on her own. It took me months, MONTHS, to convince her to do that for a single day!"

"Is fashion the only thing you ever think about?"

Whise raised her chin at Autumn. "No! I think about other stuff also… sometimes."

The professor had finally given up and admitted that Nyx was correct, and offered an apology to the class. Nyx sat down, a self-satisfied smile on her face. She really didn't like this professor; he was the same one from the other day when Taris had questioned him about Faunis attendance at their school.

Whise and Autumn watched Nyx carefully for the rest of the day, noticing that while she would still act like her usual self, she was acting odd more and more. They also noticed that she was constantly fidgeting. She was restless, and the two girls had no idea why.

Their final class was a study period, and while Autumn and Lyric spent the time catching up on assigned readings, Nyx spent her time talking about tumbling and flipping with Lyric. Autumn had finally had enough.

"Nyx, what has gotten into you today?" Autumn asked Nyx while she was walking in circles in a handstand.

"What do you mean?" Nyx asked, while balancing on one hand, then the other.

"What do I mean? You're doing a handstand! In middle of study period! You're usually so quiet and reserved, and now it's like you are someone else." Nyx rolled out of the handstand and back to her feet.

"Um... I'm just having a good day?" Nyx began to worry. She had totally let her disguise slip today… but in all honestly, she really didn't care. It felt nice to be herself for once.

"Uh huh…" Autumn wasn't buying it at all. Just then the bell decided to ring, signaling an end to classes for the day. "Nyx, is something going on? You seem-"

"Sorry gotta go bye!" Nyx streaked from the room, leaving Autumn standing there blinking in the dust kicked up by her speedy exit.

Nyx zoomed through the school corridors, past startled students and confused teachers. At one point she almost knocked over the head master, who hollered after her. She didn't care though. She was too busy reveling in her speed, enjoying the movement of the wind through her hair as her body ran off the energy of her excitement.

Out the front doors she ran, across the grounds and through the castle gates. Nyx wasn't even in the forest before she was pulling her sweater off, spreading her wings as the first tree branches passed overhead, and launching into the air mere seconds later.

The fall leaves rustled from the drafts kicked up from her wings, as she wove through the forest at a breakneck pace. On and on she flew, ever accelerating as she pushed her body further and further, faster and faster. Nyx streaked around trees, spinning to avoid branches, diving and rising to avoid parts of the canopy as her hair streamed behind her like a golden river.

Excitement fluttered in Nyx's stomach as she dreamed of using the wing blades. She wondered if he could make them to match the white of her feathers. They looked so good in his dark fea- WHAM!

Something big and hairy came out of nowhere and slammed the Faunis right into the forest floor. She slid along the undergrowth, scraping up her face, hands and arms. She laid there dazed, silently pleading for the air to go back into her lungs. A roar sounded behind her and she nervously peered over her shoulder. There, right behind her was… nothing.

Nyx's training took over as she scrambled forward and struggled back to her feet. Another rumble shook the forest floor as a massive creature landed into the spot she had occupied a second earlier. Nyx took a few more steps away, drawing her mismatched daggers in the process.

The creature that stood before her was known as an Ursa, a massive bear with glowing red eyes, and a partial exoskeleton on the upper half of its body. The creature stood upon its hind legs, raising its forelegs in a threatening display.

A smile grew on Nyx's face. This would be a challenging fight… but Nyx loved challenges. The Ursa dropped back to all fours and charged Nyx, its roar echoing through the forest. Nyx cartwheeled to the side at the last moment, and then launched herself forward with her wings, and passing under the Ursa. As the unprotected hind legs passed by her, she sliced at the monster's tendons. One dagger failed to sink past the thick fur, but the other still had some bite left in the old metal, and savagely cut through the thick tendon.

The Ursa howled in pain, stumbling sideways, and Nyx pressed the attack. The goal to fighting an Ursa was to be quick and to dodge. Sure some of the larger fighters could block one of the heavy attacks launched by the bear, but Nyx's twin daggers were ill suited for the task.

The Ursa charged after her, its hind leg dragging behind it. Nyx streaked to the side and aimed her dagger at its throat. The beast twisted at the last second, and her dagger shattered in her hand as it hit the reinforced exoskeleton. Nyx looked down at her hand dumbfounded; blood was streaming out of several deep gorges from where her dagger had shattered in her grasp. The Ursa took this opportunity to press the attack. It swung one of its massive paws, backhanding Nyx across the clearing. Nyx slammed hard into an old pine tree, and slid down to her knees, an explosion of spots dancing in front of her eyes.

The monster stalked forward, snarling, and raised its foreleg for a final strike. Time seemed to slow as the razor sharp claws accelerated towards her crumpled body. Nyx gathered her last ounce of strength and threw her body forward. The claws passed inches over her head, lodging themselves in the tree, and in one fluid motion, Nyx rolled to her feet and plunged her remaining dagger into the exposed eye of the lumbering giant.

The beast released one last roar, before crumpling to the ground, its body going silent and still. Nyx collapsed next to the beast, panting and grinning in triumph. She held up her hand and inspected it. The wound was worse than she had previously feared; the cuts were deep and filled with dirt. Worse still, they were leaking blood at an alarming rate. Nyx cut a strip of cloth from her sweater and wrapped it tight around her hand, wincing in pain.

Nyx sighed. She was going to be late. She gathered her things and launched into the air, flying towards the city. Her pace was far slower this time, as she felt a haze falling over her mind.


	6. Chapter 6

Nyx

Chapter 6

Nyx stumbled into the market square. The stalls were cram packed with eager traders looking to get new goods from faraway lands. Her bandage had long since become soaked with her blood, and was now dripping onto the street, marking her passage with bright red ink. Mud and dirt mixed in with the scrapes on her face made her look almost like one of the forest monsters. The crown parted as she passed through it, no one wanting to get too close to the filthy girl. She limped mindlessly towards the Smith's table, her vision blackening along the edges.

The smith was at his table, calling out his wares to the market patrons in a rich loud voice. A few people would cast glances over at his table, but would move on when they noticed his wings. Vale was a city of discrimination, where humans looked down their noses at the faunis minority. Some would ignore the faunis; others would go to great lengths to cause the faunis strife.

Nyx stumbled up to the table, leaning on it and trying to catch her breath. "S-Sorry I'm la… late… forest was…" She must have collapsed, because the next thing she knew, the Smith was rushing to his tent, with her in his arms. He was saying something, screaming at her and shaking her. Nyx drowsily blinked at him, wondering what he was saying. She began to drift off despite his yelling. She tried to tell him to stop shaking her, but the words came out as an unidentifiable jumble of sounds. The darkness at the edges of her vision closed in, and Nyx begin to drift off. In the corner of her vision, she could barely see the smith pull a hand back and- SLAP!

Stars exploded past her eyes as she was cruelly ripped from the grasp of slumber. Her vision righted itself, and the she was able to make out what the smith was yelling at her.  
"WAKE UP! THIS IS NO TIME TO SLEEP. KEEP LOOKING AT ME!" Nyx stared at the smith. She was lying down on a bench inside the tent, while the smith rushed around his humble abode. A gross scent wafted around as he brewed some sort of vile tea, constantly checking to see if she was awake.

A short while later the smith held the tea to her mouth. "Drink." He said in a tone that offered no room for argument. She opened her mouth and gagged as the vile liquid slid down her throat. The smith held her chin, making her drink the rest. He pulled away as she coughed and sputtered, feeling like she was going to throw up.

"That will help with the blood loss, now sit up and tell me everything." She didn't have much of a choice with him pulling her into a sitting position. While the tea had tasted rancid, it did help wake her up a bit. She told him of the fight with the Ursa as he removed the blood soaked bandage on her hand.

"And then I rolled forward and-"

"Bite down."

"Wha-?" The smith scrubbed her wounds with an alcohol soaked rag, ignoring the high pitched scream of pain coming from Nyx. She struggled against him, trying to pull her hand away. The smith released her hand and slammed a cleaver into the wood bench next to her causing her to jump.

"Either I scrub, or I cut it off. It will become infected you foolish hatchling." The smith just sat there waiting. Nyx eyed the cleaver nervously and meekly offered her hand back to him, wincing as he once again scrubbed her wounds raw. Once the smith was content with his handiwork, he rubbed some green paste on the wounds and bound the hand tightly in fresh linen gauze. While he checked over the rest of her injuries, she continued her story.

"I was going to stab it in the neck, but it shifted and my dagger…" She looked down sadly. "My dagger shattered in my hand…"

"You were fighting with bad steel." He picked up her last remaining dagger in both hands and snapped it in half as if it were nothing but a twig. Nyx looked up at him with horror, tears coming to her eyes.

"Th-that was mine…" The smith raised an eyebrow at her.

"Better it breaks in here than when you are fighting a baby Ursa."

Nyx was shocked, that monster was huge. "Baby! It was bigger than a car!"

"Exactly. Full grown Ursa's are much larger than that. Did you collect anything from its corpse?" Nyx nodded, pointing at her bags.

"I have its teeth and claws."

The smith nodded in satisfaction. "Good, take those and go get yourself new weapons and clothes tomorrow." He walked around her, inspecting her face, wings, and legs. "You have a sprained ankle and a ripped muscle in your wing. No flying." Nyx opened her mouth to protest, but a hard look from the smith made her close her mouth.

"No flying, that's final." The smith sighed, sitting down next to her. "You are just like my daughter back home. Always getting into fights you aren't ready for. Patience Hatchling, running into battle will get you killed… You will sleep here tonight. I will not have you limping through the forest at night while injured." Nyx slumped down, depressed. "Tomorrow, you can work the stall all day while I create your feather blades." Nyx perked up at this, a wide smile coming to her face.

The smith pulled out a small folding cot and a spare blanket. "Sleep here. If you need me, I'll be in the next room." The smith strode from the room, closing the curtain between the common area and his private chambers. Nyx climbed into the cot, wondering how she would explain her absence to her friends, before drifting off into a dreamless slumber.


	7. Chapter 7

Nyx

Chapter 7

Something poked her in the forehead. Nyx groaned, rolling over mumbling for the annoyance to go away. It came again in the form of a hand shaking her shoulder. Nyx smacked the hand away, curling into a ball in an attempt to hold onto the last vestiges of her sleep. The cot was overturned and Nyx fell to the floor with a startled yelp.

The smith stood over her with a look of mild amusement. "Get up, you have work to do." She stood up, yawning and drowsily accepted the bread and fruit he thrust into her hands. "Eat."

She sat down on the bench, nibbling on the food and watching as he prepared his tent for the day of work ahead of him. There was much to do, setting out the weapons, heating the smelter, and of course, setting a pot of tea to boil. She finished off her meager breakfast, and he shooed her out of the tent.

"Go. Get new clothes. You can't sell my wares looking like the undead." Nyx looked down at her clothes. What little that was still in one piece was caked with mud and blood. The smith gave her one last push, and she was on her way.

The market was just opening, so it wasn't particularly busy yet. Nyx wandered the stalls looking at the different goods for sale. Her eyes caught on a pair of shoes that were in style at the moment, and she wandered up to them. The trader jumped up, trying to shoo her away.

"Leave! I'll have no pickpockets and thieves drooling over my wares!" Nyx raised an eyebrow at him.

"I'm training to be a Huntress. I just killed an Ursa, pardon me for not looking my best!" She decided it best not to tell him it wasn't a full grown Ursa.

"And I'm the king of Vale!" The vendor laughed at her, and her scowl deepened. She opened her bag and slammed one of the massive Ursa teeth into the table, impaling deep into the wood.

"Is this proof enough?" The trader's demeanor changed drastically as he looked greedily at the Ursa tooth. Monster pelts, teeth and claws sold for quite a respectable price. "Nevermind, you're products look rather cheap and poorly stitched!" She turned on her heel and stomped away, despite the apologies the trader was calling after her.

The next stall was much friendlier. The trader gave her one glance over before wandering over to help her. "Rough night?"

Nyx smiled at him. "You have no idea." She browsed his selection, buying a pair of knee length boots, new tights, a fresh blouse and a light coat to go over it to hide her wings. She thanked him, paying with one of the teeth. She wandered back to the Smith's tent, watching as the crowd began to fill in the market. The smith was already at his anvil, prepping to make a new blade. He looked up as she approached and gestured to his tent.

"There is a bath in there, go wash, preen, then come out and man the stall." Nyx didn't need to be told twice. Her hair was coated with blood and sweat and it took all her willpower not to sprint into the tent.

About an hour later a knock came from outside. "Come in." Nyx called, trying to work a stubborn twig out of her feathers. The smith walked in and, noticing what she was doing, came to help her. She sat there while he gently removed the stick, admonishing her for flying so low in the forest.

"There. Now extend your wing." Nyx did as told, wincing slightly as the torn muscle throbbed in protest. The smith took measurements of her primary flight feathers, before nodding in satisfaction. "I will get started on these. Go sell." With that, he turned and strode once more out of the tent.

Nyx stepped into her new boots, pulling the coat over her wings, and rechecking the bandage around her hand. On the way out, she stopped to admire herself in the mirror. She really did look different with her hair down, and out of those bulky sweaters.

There was no one near the stall, so Nyx took a few minutes to inspect the weapons for sale. All of them were expertly crafted, with amazing balance. Intricate designs had been forged into the steel, and she spent a while admiring their craftsmanship. It seemed the smith specialized in larger weapons, as the only thing she had seen him craft smaller than a longsword was his feather blades. She looked around the market place, knowing that before she headed back she would need to purchase some new daggers. The thought excited her. Nyx loved the idea of getting new weapons.

As she stood there day dreaming about different daggers, her vision was obstructed by a massive dark haired man. He stood there looking curiously at one of the smith's finer swords.

"How much for this piece of junk?" Nyx gasped in shock and outrage. That was a beautiful sword!

"More than you have. Maybe you should go look in the dump for a new weapon." She crossed her arms angrily.

He dropped the sword to the table with a thunk, and then grabbed her by the shirt wrenching her forward over the counter of the stall. "Don't toy with me girl." He growled. Her feet scrabbled for purchase, trying to regain her balance.

She snarled and punched him in the face. He dropped her, stumbling backwards holding a bloody nose. "I don't trade with filth. LEAVE!" She screamed. The man pushed off the ground and stomped forward.

"You're gonna regret that." He slammed his fist into the girl's face. Nyx collapsed to the floor, an explosion of stars filling her vision. She crawled away, her fingers reaching for something, anything to help her. The thug strode forward and drove his foot into her stomach, right as her hand grasped the hilt of a sword. Air whooshed out of her lungs, and she was sent rolling into the dirt.

Nyx struggled to her feet, gasping as the air and pulling the sword into a feeble on guard position. The thug laughed and walked forward, totally unconcerned about the deadly blade held centered at his heart. Nyx, finally able to breath once again, steadied the sword. The man stopped, a grin spreading across his face, and drew his own sword.

"Big mistake little girl" he laughed, then slammed his sword into her guard. Nyx stumbled back from the force of the blow, gritting her teeth in pain. She could feel the wounds in her hand reopening. She deflected his next strike, skittering a few feet away from him.

Nyx wasn't very skilled with a sword, but the Academy required all their students to undertake training in swordplay. She was pretty out of practice with the sword, but the oaf in front of her obviously had never received any formal training with the sword. He put all his weight behind his attacks in great loping hacks. Nyx blocked a few, and turned away others, each time her arm jarring from the shock.

The crowds of people parted for them as they traded blows across the market square. Vendors stopped selling and customers stopped buying to watch the spectacle. A few mutters went around wondering if it was a demonstration. Others asked if they should intervene, concerned for the small girl fighting the lumbering giant.

Nyx fought as hard as she could with her injured hand. Each time she was forced to block a strike, a wave of pain would shoot up her arm as the deep gashes leaked blood. Her attacker showed no signs of slowing down the fight anytime soon, still coming at her with incredibly strong strikes. She would have to find some way to end this quick, or she would end up sliced in half, and that wouldn't make the smith very happy…

The attacker bull rushed her again and she noticed a dagger fastened to his side. She rolled to the right, ducking under the horizontal strike that would have cut her in two. He snarled and twisted around, his muscles bunching up as he prepared to charge again. She wouldn't be able to roll away again like that. This was her last chance.

Nyx took her sword in both hands and flung it with all her strength at the attacker. The sword flipped end over end flying at his chest. She didn't take the time to watch if it struck or not. Nyx dove for the dagger at his side, ripping it out of its scabbard and plunging it deep into his foot.

The crowd roared with approval, the man hollered in pain and Nyx quickly backed away from him. He struggled, thrashing, but his foot was pinned to the wood planks below him. The crowd converged on her, offering congratulations, and someone handing back her borrowed sword. She looked around, trying to find some way of escaping. Her bandage was once again soaked through with her blood, and was stinging something fierce. A gap in the crowd drew her eye, and she dived for it, finally breaking free of the mass of people. Nyx ran back to the smith's tent, unaware of the police arresting the thug for disturbing the peace and attempted murder.

The smith was not happy. Nyx slid to a stop right in front of him, peering up into a face that was etched with disapproval. Her shoulders slumped and she looked down at the floor like a child being punished. The smith pulled the sword from her hand and dropped it back on the table, then dragged her by arm into the tent.

"I told you to sell! Not to fight. Don't you realize you are injured? If you keep this up, the wounds will never heal." He took her hand and began to remove the bandage.

"But he attacked me! I just defended myself. Besides, I won!" She winced as he tightly wrapped her hand in some fresh gauze and moved on to inspect her black eye.

"Then you should have yelled for me! …I know you were able to win on your own, but if you keep doing things like this, your hand will end up getting infected!"

Nyx frowned, staying quiet and letting him finish his lecture. A short time later, he finished venting his frustration and told her to go sell things, but not before she promised not to get into any more fights.

She walked outside the tent and froze, eyes going wide. There was a large crowd standing around the stall, inspecting the smith's weapons. A wide smile grew on her face and she approached them. "How can I help you?"


	8. Chapter 8

Nyx

Chapter 8

A few hours later, Nyx poked her head into the tent. "Finished." The smith was holding a bright white piece of metal up to his eye.

"Finished what?" He nodded in satisfaction, turned it over and began sharpening the other side.

"Finished selling!" The smith put down the blade and raised an eyebrow at her.

"The market doesn't close for two more hours. Is there anyone out there still looking for weapons?"

"Um… I guess so."

"Then go out there and sell!" The smith turned his attention back to the white blade.

Nyx rolled her eyes. "No you don't understand. I'm out of stuff to sell! Unless you have some chest full of more weapons, I can't really do anything."

The smith froze, slowly turning to look at her. "You sold… everything?"

"Yeah! Apparently my fight caught like everyone's attention. I think half the market was lined up to look at your weapons!" Nyx walked into the tent and hefted a large bag of gold, dropping it on the table.

The smith laughed loud and deep, standing up and sweeping her off her feet, swinging the girl around the room. "Hah! Look at that! The little hatchling is a trader!" Nyx shrieked at him to put her down, a deep blush settling on her face. The smith dropped her to her feet and turned back to gather up his work while Nyx indigently fixed her hair.

The smith turned around, a wide smile decorating his face. She pulled the strands back into place, looking at him grumpily, till she saw what he was showing her. He held up two white feathers. Nyx gasped when she realized they were the feather blades, taking one and inspecting it in awe.

"They look so real! How did you do this?" She slid off her coat and extended one of her wings, matching the blade to her feathers. "This is amazing; it's the exact same color!"

The smith took the blade from her hand. "Hold your wing still. I shall show you how to attach it." He spent several minutes explaining the mechanics behind the blade's clasp. "You will need to practice. We shall start with the basics. Flick your wings hard." Nyx did as she was to, eagerly awaiting to see the bladed feather shoot out. Nothing happened.

She inspected the feather again. "I think it's broken… it didn't detach."

The smith chuckled at her confusion. "No, that is good. You don't want these flying out anytime you use your wings. To shoot them out, you must do this." He took the feather in his hand and moved it into a really awkward position.

"That feels weird…" She tried what he was saying. "So I have to twist it like this to-" THUNK! Nyx paused mid-sentence, staring at the blade now quivering in the bench.

The smith swatted her wing. "NOT YET! You are not ready to learn that yet." She tried unsuccessfully to hide a smile.

"Okay… but that was SOOOO COOL!" The smith rolled his eyes at her, clipping the blade to her feather once more.

"That is enough for today. Go home, eat, sleep. Remember you are grounded till your wing heals." He pushed her to the tent door.

"H-Hey wait! You only gave me two feathers. What about the others?"

"You will train with two, and then I will make you more when you are ready. Go, and no more fighting!" Nyx grumbled and started on the long walk back to Guardian Academy. The trip was uneventful to say the least. The sun was setting and the sky was a fiery orange. The path from the city to the Academy was through a safer part of the forest, and was regularly patrolled by the city watch and the occasional hunter or huntress.

At one point, Nyx became fed up with walking and spread her wings, jumping into the air. A few minutes later, she tumbled to the forest floor in a hasty crash landing. Her injured wing cramped up almost immediately of getting airborne, and she spent ten minutes hugging her wing, waiting for the pain to pass.

The sun was well below the horizon when she stumbled into her room. The room was dark and empty, and Nyx smiled at the thought of going to sleep without having to deal with her roommates. She didn't bother change out of her dusty clothes, only taking time to kick off her boots before collapsing into the bed. Her eyes closed and a smile graced her lips as she dreamed of flying through misty mountains and moonlit forests.


	9. Chapter 9

Nyx

Chapter 9

Nyx was flying. Her wings were working in perfect unison, guiding her through the dancing winds. Snow covered mountains passed below her, and she could see the moonlight glittering off the ice. The cool crisp air breathed life into her lungs, and a sense of belonging settled in her heart.

Lights could be seen in the distance, filtered throughout the forest. As if controlled by some greater force, Nyx felt herself drawn towards them. Wonder and happiness flowed through her mind as she got closer to the lights. They resolved themselves into houses and buildings, settled within the forest. Some nestled among the ferns, others attached to the very trees. A light snow dusted everything in sight. It was cold, but a sort of warmth radiated from this place.

Happiness and smiles could be seen on all the inhabitants in this hidden town. Strangers would greet each other with a laugh and a hug. Children ran through the forest, lost in their own adventures. Dogs barked, weaving through the legs of the town's inhabitants, much to their amusement.

She bumped into someone, startled and offering an apology. The man turned around, a proud smile decorating his features. Nyx gasped, clapping her hand to her mouth, tears forming in her eyes.

"Welcome home Nyx." Her father wrapped her in a tight embrace, protecting her from the outside world. She felt him wrap his strong wings around the two of them, the smell of fresh pine tickling her nose. She melted into his embrace, lost to everything else, just never wanting to let go of him.

A distant sound disturbed her peace. Her father pulled away, a sad smile on his face and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. A muffled voice was speaking behind her. Nyx grasped at her father, willing him to hold her one more time. The forest began to fade. The people and children had disappeared, and she could no longer hear the sound of barking dogs. Everything faded to white, and she cast one last pleading look at her father. He smiled, nodding to her then faded from sight.

"Oh thank heavens, she's back."

"We need to put a leash on her…" Someone muttered. Nyx rolled over, curling into a ball, trying to capture the last remnants of her dream. Someone gasped and pulled at Nyx's injured wrist. The girl flinched in pain, losing all contact with her dreams.

Soft morning light streamed through the windows. Three girls stood before her bed, dark circles under their eyes, and worry clearly on their faces. Nyx blinked away the lingering traces of sleep, and stretched as Autumn unwrapped the bandage from her hand.

"Nyx, what happened? You just disappeared! What ha-" The fiery haired girl gasped as she caught sight of the deep gashes on her hand. They were partially healed, no longer bleeding, but still looked quite serious.

"Whise, get me the medical kit. Lyric, grab that green jar on my desk." The two girls hopped to the command issued forth by their leader. Nyx was pulled out of her bed and made to sit in a chair at the center of the room. Autumn inspected her black eye, from where the thug had punched her.

"Nyx. Explanation. Now." Nyx looked into Autumn's steely eyes. There would be no getting out of this story, she observed.

"I was attacked by an Ursa, while in the woods… one of my daggers broke in my hand during the fight. I… um… lost the other dagger." She didn't want to bring the smith into the story.

Autumn added some ointment to her partially healed cuts, and wrapped it in a fresh bandage. "And where did you get the black eye?"

She paled a little. How was she going to explain that? "Um… I ran into a wall…"

Whise laughed at that. "I sincerely doubt that. Walls don't punch back…"

Lyric looked at her sadly. "Why aren't you telling us the truth? Don't you trust us?" Nyx's heart seized in her throat. How could she tell them the truth? They wouldn't understand how could they? Would they understand the joy she felt at meeting another of her race? At the sense of belonging she felt when he gave her advice, or the memories of family he evoked when he scolded her. Lyric's eyes continued to bore into her soul, and Nyx sighed and looked away, least she spill her deepest darkest secret.

"I got into a fight at the market… After killing the Ursa, I stumbled into town for medical help. I stayed overnight. The next morning I was trading the teeth of the Ursa for some new clothes and I um… bumped into this thug. He punched me, and I stabbed a dagger into his foot."

All three girls looked horrified. "You… stabbed him in the foot? That um… that seems a little extreme…" Whise said.

"Well I stabbed after he drew his sword on me… we actually fought for a few minutes. I was fighting for my life! What did you expect me to do, ask him politely to stop?"

"Ok, enough arguing! Nyx, stop getting into fights! …can't believe I just said that… and since when do you get into fights anyways?" Nyx stayed silent, gaining a sudden interest in the floor. Autumn sighed in exasperation, and went to put away her medical supplies. "Just promise you won't run off like that anymore okay? …Nyx?" Autumn turned around, but Nyx was nowhere to be seen. "DANGIT!"

Nyx sprinted down the hallways, a giggle escaping from her mouth. Classrooms streaked by in a blur as she made her way to the front door of the academy. She felt like a ninja, darting this way and that, occasionally sneaking past other students. As to why she was sneaking, Nyx really didn't know why, or even care. It was all part of the game.

The castle hallways gave way to the winding branches of the forest. She followed the path to town, wishing for the umpteenth time that her wings were in working order. As she ran, her mind began to wonder back to her dream. It was all so familiar. Nyx knew in her heart that she had been there before. A smile lit her face as she remembered her father hugging her. She ran on, the familiar scent of fresh pine following her.


	10. Chapter 10

Nyx

Chapter 10

"You filthy Faunus scum!" Nyx froze dead in her tracks, beads of sweat forming on her neck and her heart rate skyrocketing. Who said that? Where they talking to her? Her wings twitched, urging her to take to the skies before the crowd turned violent against her. Images of humans tearing her limb from limb filtered through her mind, and she began to panic. Hyperventilating, she looked for a way out of the marketplace, when a thought struck her. No one had attacked her yet. She cast her gaze among the crowd, forcing her breathing to slow down.

No one seemed to pay the panicking girl any heed. Instead, their attention was focused on a man sprinting through the crowds. An angry trader, a baker by the look of him, was chasing the supposed culprit while throwing angry curses. Nyx stood rooted in the spot as he continued to run from his pursuer. He had raven colored black hair, and wore faded blue jeans and a ragged black shirt. In his hand was the reason the baker was chasing him. A fresh loaf of bread was clutched in his fingers and still steaming in the cold morning air.

The crowd parted around her to give him room to pass, but Nyx stood rooted in spot, unable to tear her eyes away from the runner. This was the Faunus that the baker had screamed about. As he approached her at a breakneck speed, she noticed the black cat ears poking out of his hair and the tail streaking behind him.

Time seemed to slow as he sprinted past her. He looked her in the eyes, a grin plastered on his face, and winked, before disappearing around the corner. A deep blush settled on her face as she watched him go. The baker was hot on his heels and ran past her moments later. Without fully realizing what she was doing, Nyx stuck her foot out and tripped the baker. He stumbled and landed hard on his face. The crowd's attention snapped to her, and she realized what had just occurred.

The baker climbed to his feet, noticing the thief was long gone, and stomped over to her. "You insolent little child! Do you understand what you just did?"

The appropriate response was to look down meekly and quietly apologize, but Nyx had had trouble keeping up her disguise as of late. Her mouth opened, words spilling out before she could hold her tongue. "It was just a piece of bread you old fool." Her eyes widened in surprise and the baker's face turned a deep shade of purple.

"You- You- HOW DARE YOU!" He stepped right up to her, leaning down and snarling in her face. "I could have you flogged that! You aided that Faunus trash in thievery!"

Nyx's blood began to boil. "Who are you to call him trash? What makes you any better than him?!"

"He is a degenerate just like the rest of his kind, nothing but thieves and beggars!"

Nyx clenched her fists together, unable to keep the rage from seeping into her voice. "WHAT DO YOU EXPECT! YOU REFUSE TO TRADE WITH THEM, SO THEY HAVE TO RESORT TO STEALING!"

The baker took a step back, startled at the small girl's ferocious response, although he quickly recovered, even angrier than before. "I DON'T TRADE WITH FREAKS!"

That was the final straw. Nyx's wings flexed under her jacket, ready to rip through and slice the baker to ribbons with her feather blades. A hand on her shoulder brought all thoughts of retribution to a stumbling halt. The smith stood behind her, towering over the rest of the crowd. Once again he was without a shirt, and his dark wings exposed for the entire world to see. He pulled Nyx behind him, giving her a look that said "You're in BIG trouble." He turned his attention back to the baker and flipped a single gold coin to the floor in front of him.

"That should cover the price of the bread." The smith turned his back on the furious baker and began to guide Nyx back to his tent.

"You expect me to pick this off the floor?" The baker looked insulted.

The smith didn't bother looking at him. "I have come to expect nothing from you except discrimination and second rate pastries." The baker looked as if he had been slapped, but the smith guided Nyx away before she could hear his no doubt enraged response.

A few minutes later, Nyx was seated on a bench in the tent while the smith paced in front of her, lecturing her ears off.

"What were you thinking? Can you not go twenty four hours without getting into another fight? It's a miracle you have survived this long!" He paused to look at her. "Are you even listening to what I'm saying?"

"Yes but he-"

"NO BUTS! You promised to stop fighting, and here I find you about to attack him! WITH YOUR WING BLADES! If you ever want to be accepted by the humans, you cannot expose your secret by attacking another human! You will be lynched for sure. Don't argue with me, I have seen it happen before." He sat down across from her, taking a deep breath and his angry eyes softening a little. "I understand that you wanted to help that Faunus, but his actions are his to bear. He stole. That is not right, even if you are a Faunus."

"But there are no shops in this city that will trade with Faunus!" She replied.

"That's not true, there is alwa-" He began to respond, but she didn't give him the chance to finish.

"No! You don't understand. You are new here; you don't know how bad it is. I grew up on the streets!" Her anger began to rise as she remembered what it was like. "I SLEPT IN A BOX TWO BLOCKS AWAY!" The smith sat there, waiting for her to continue. "There is no one who will trade with us. I tried everywhere! I had to steal every day. EVERY DAY! Just to keep enough food in my stomach to stay alive. You can't just come here, lecturing on right and wrong. You don't understand! You grew up in a tribe. You were around others of your kind."

Tears filled Nyx's vision, the dream of her father returning. "I had nothing, no one to turn to, and nothing to call my own." Her volume significantly decreased. "My home was an alleyway, not a light filled forest. I didn't have dogs barking and children playing. I didn't have strangers greeting each other like family… I- I-" She couldn't go one. The dream replayed in her mind over and over again. It was so real, yet so distant. Some far off memory that felt more like a fantasy. The smell of fresh pine had felt so real in her dreams, but when she awoke, nothing remained but the smell of dead leaves.

The smith brought the crying girl into his arms, soundlessly holding her as she wept the troubles of her past away. They sat like that for a while, until her sobs wracking her body diminished into a quiet whimper. The smith stilled her shaking shoulders and turned her to face him.

"You are correct. It is not my place to lecture of my misguided life views… I still don't enjoy the thought of our kind justifying theft… but I understand that sometimes food in your stomach is better than a clear conscious." He stood up, pulling Nyx to her feet in the process. "It is no use trying to trade today. Too many saw you walk away with me, and I doubt you would be able to sell much today."

The smith walked outside to his forge, and Nyx followed, wiping the tears from her eyes. The smith produced two lengths of metal, and handed her a hammer. She took it and looked at him confused, not knowing what to do.

"You still have not replaced those daggers of yours. Today I thought I would teach you to forge some of your own."

In all honesty, Nyx didn't feel like doing anything of that sort. All she wanted to do was curl into a ball in her bed and forget this day ever happened.

"You have heard of weapons imbued with fire?" This took her by surprise. The memory of her roommate trying to find a way to augment it into her weapon surfaced.

"Yeah, people call it phoenix fire, since it never goes out." She responded.

"That is correct. It is forged into the actual blade of the weapon. When the creator is crafting the weapon, they are able to cast their emotions into the weapon. The type of emotion gives it form. This was discovered seventy years ago by the faunus, though now the secret to its forging is well known among the weapon crafters, human and faunus alike." The smith placed the twin lengths of metal into the burning coals of the furnace.

While the smith watched the heating metal, Nyx took a moment to inspect the hammer she held in her hands. Intricate designs were crafted into the surface of the metal, seeming to glow and shift beneath the midday sun, the scent of scorched earth rising from the hammer.

The smith came around and wrapped his hand around hers, pulling the glowing length of metal from the furnace. "I will guide your hand, but it is you that must create the blade. Close your eyes." She did as told, he began to guide her hand, striking the hammer against the metal. "You already know the blade this will become, the metal just needs encouragement." The hammer slammed down again, the vibrations ringing up Nyx's arm. "You must put a piece of yourself into the blade." Another strike sounded out. "Give it your dreams, give it your nightmares. Feed to the metal your happiness and sorrow, your memories and aspirations." The ringing continued to sound, the heat of the metal causing her face to flush. "You must place a piece of your soul within its metal weave. This is not just a weapon; it is an extension of you."

Nyx opened her eyes, but did not see the metal in front of her. What she saw was the death of her family. The cruel torture at the hands of the humans. The burning of her childhood home. A tear streaked down her cheek and splattered against the red hot metal. Memories flooded her mind, buried hurt and pain resurfacing. The loneliness of the forest, the cruelty of the streets. The stress of her secret. The fear of losing her friends. The hatred she had received and gave in return. In the sea of despair a spark shone. The dream of her father, the light filled forest and scent of fresh pine. She laughed amidst the tears, warmth flooding her. The memory of dogs barking and strangers hugging and children playing. She gave it her all, laying the foundation with the strife that had plagued her life, and pouring her hopes and dreams into the core of the creation. She gave it everything until she felt nothing save one emotion; pride.

Her vision cleared and before her were two identical blades, the purest white in color and tinged with blue on the edge of the blade. When they had begun to work on the second blade, she didn't know. All she could remember was the memories and emotions, taking each one and pounding it into the steel. The smith had been right, the twin blades had taken on the form of long slender daggers that shined brightly in the sun.

The smith was wiping off his hands, looking contentedly at the blades. "You did good. How do you feel, are you okay?"

She couldn't draw her eyes away from the daggers in front of her, but somehow managed to find her tongue. "I- I think so… that was… hard."

"Confronting your memories never is. Pick them up and tell me what you think." She hesitantly picked one up, afraid that touching it would bring back the rush of memories. She traced a finger along the edge and shivered. The metal was colder than ice and wickedly sharp, but the hilt was something completely different. The handle was warm and comfortable, the memory of home surfacing in her mind.

"Your blade is imbued with everfrost, and not a small amount of it. Just as phoenix fire is born from rage, everfrost is born from sorrow. The hilt is good though. I am glad you took my advice. Too many beginners give it all their unwanted memories and emotions, and are unable to even hold the weapon as a result. It is the good memories and emotions that help us deal with the bad ones." He handed her the other weapon. "They are fine daggers, you should be proud. It is getting late and you have class tomorrow. Go home and sleep. Tomorrow you have weapons to sell… And no more fighting!"

Nyx waved him goodbye and began her long trek home. The daggers still clutched protectively in her arms. As she walked back her eyes traced the designs wrought into the steel, a sense of happiness flowing through her. In her arms were the physical representation of all her sorrow and all her happiness, combined into a beautifully crafted blade. She smiled and continued on her way, her eyes tracing the star constellations decorating the night sky.


	11. Chapter 11

Nyx

Chapter 11

The room was freezing, but Nyx didn't care. She was nestled under her blankets, wrapped in the warm embrace of her dreams and ignorant to the world around her. Sunlight streamed through the open window and reflected off the snow that covered the floor. Glittering ice crystals covered every inch of the room, sparkling in response to the rising sound. Birds chirped outside, greeting the new day with a melody of sounds. The lovely chorus was accompanied by a rather undignified groan coming from her slowly rousing roommates.

A screech echoed through the room, no doubt originating from some vile morning creature. The bird's chirping silenced at the intrusion of this new voice, offended that it had thrown off the delicate tempo of their symphony.

"What the- IS THAT SNOW?" the creature screamed. Nyx burrowed deeper into the covers, intent on ignoring whoever was making the racket. Her dreams returned in a smooth flow; the wind fluttering over her feathers as she danced a ballet to an unknown song in the sky. She would dive and rise as the currents commanded it, following the autumn leaves that flipped and tumbled in the wind around her. The scenery changed, and Nyx found herself strolling under the red and gold trees, fallen leaves crunching underfoot. A crisp chill was in the air and the scent on November scents tickled her nose. She knew not where she was going, nor what would await her when she arrived, but this was unimportant. All that mattered was the present, she realized as she stood gazing at the sheer beauty that nature was showcasing for her.

"SNOWBALL FIGHT!" The outside world once again made a grab for her attention. A whimper escaped her lips as she fought the pull of consciousness. It was hopeless; the dreams had escaped her grasp. Nyx cracked open one eye to see what was making all the racket.

"I swear if you throw that-" She heard the sound of a muffled impact, shortly followed by a high pitched girly scream. "I'm going to kill you!" Someone else in the room yelped.

"Where did all this snow come from?" Autumn asked.

"Questions later, I need to kill Lyric first!" Whise growled.

"It was Nyx!" Lyric was dashing around the room, several snowballs in her arms, and trying to stay away from Whise. Nyx was still curled in a ball, the covers wrapped like a protective shell around her, keeping the cold at bay.

"How could it be? She's still asleep. GET BACK HERE!" Whise said. Lyric launched several snowballs at Whise as she continued to elude her. Nyx let loose a loud yawn, drawing the attention of her roommates.

"About time you woke up."

"Come join the snowball fight!"

Nyx grumbled and closed her eyes, trying to catch a few more minutes of sleep. Autumn peered up into the top bunk, and poked Nyx on the nose. "Hey, wake up." Nyx groaned and opened a single eye.

"No…s'cold… sleepy." Autumn was having none of that and pulled the covers off of her.

"You can be sleepy later. There is snow on our floor." Autumn said, crossing her arms.

"Oh… whoops…" Nyx forgot to put her daggers in their scabbards last night. When she had finally made it back to the Academy, she was so exhausted she just discarded the naked blades on the floor next to her boots. The Everfrost imbued in the blades must have frozen the floor overnight. The scabbards she had canceled out the effects of the Everfrost, but when left uncovered, whatever it was touching would usually freeze.

Autumn narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean whoops? What did you do?" Nyx quickly explained that her new daggers were imbued with Everfrost and she left them on the floor. "Well get up then! We need to clean all this up before classes."

The morning drudged by at a snail's pace. They worked hard to clean the snow out of the room, listing to the nonstop grumbling from Whise. Classes also failed to hold Nyx's attention. She sat there idly flicking her pencil around the desk, bored out of her mind. She didn't even know what the professors were lecturing about that day, but it must have been unimportant, since half the class was sleeping.

The bell rang, and Nyx was out the door in the blink of an eye, escape clear in her mind. She broke into a sprint, a grin on her face. Finally she was free, the smith would be waiting, forging feather blades for her. She made it two steps when a hand grabbed the back of her coat, causing her to choke and stumble back.

Behind her stood Autumn, Whise and Lyric. "Where exactly do you think you are going?" An annoyed frown graced the older girl's mouth.

"I was uh-" Nyx began.

"Yeah, no. I can see the lie on your tongue. Why do you keep running off? You disappear pretty much every day for hours on end." Autumn crossed her arms, going into overprotective mom mode.

"Are you meeting up with a boy?" Whise asked, grinning wickedly.

Nyx turned bright red. "WHAT?! N-No! I'm just-"

"Stop stuttering Nyx, its unbecoming." Whise told her, still grinning. Nyx was at a loss of words. She had no idea how to act or what to say. The smith's warning came flooding back to her. It wasn't if they found out, it was when.

Nyx wasn't ready to be spilling the details of her secret life just yet. "Hey look, it's snowing!" Nyx yelled, while pointing out the window. It was, in fact, snowing, and this time it wasn't her dagger's fault. All three of her roommates turned to look out the window, and Nyx vanished around the corner.

Through the corridors and down the stairs she ran, bursting through the front door and sprinting across the snow covered grounds. She could hear the sounds of her roommates perusing her as the forest closed in around her. The second the trees were overhead, Nyx snapped open her wings and blasted deep into the forest.

The snow fell in big flat flakes, batting against her face as she zoomed through the forest. Everything was quiet, and a sort of peace filled the dangerous woods. It seemed as if even the monsters had stopped to enjoy the first snow of the season.

Nyx glided effortlessly through the trees, which had taken on a black and white appearance due to the snow piling on their branches. By the time that she arrived at the marketplace, a thick blanket of the cold white stuff covered everything. She watched as some younger kids shoveled the snow, hoping to earn a bit of money.

The smith was in a poor mood. Saying he didn't like the cold would be an understatement. His tribe of dark skinned faunus haled from the hottest parts of the southern deserts, and was not used to such cold climates. She took the weapons he gave her, and got to work selling them.

There were not many customers that day, due to most seeking shelter from the cold weather. The work was boring, but Nyx was giddy with happiness. Unlike the smith, she loved the cold. Her family had come from the farthest reaches of the northern mountains, and snow had always reminded her of home.

The day's trading was all but done when the smith called her into the tent, handing her two more feather blades. For the next several hours they spent training with them. He would show her the uses and advantages of each blade. When to throw them, and when to use them for slashing attacks.

"Remember to never block with them. They are not strong enough to deflect a blade, and would most likely injure you. Dodge or block with your daggers." While they trained, he would regale her with tales of his life. Sometimes he would speak of his family back home, other times he spoke of his adventures while trading.

Nightfall arrived, and she bid him a good night, flying home under the light of the shining stars. Her roommates tried to pry her for information but she ignored them and collapsed into her bed.

Time passed in a blur. Days turned into weeks, Fall turning to Winter. Every day was the same. She would go to class, vaguely pay attention and await the end of school. The bell would ring and she would make her hasty escape. Several times her roommates had tried to follow her, once even being so bold as to lay a trap for her. It never worked though, the second she entered the forest, they would always lose her.

Trading was like the sea. Some days it would be calm and boring while other days would be filled with countless orders, repairs and purchases. At the end of each day, for a few hours, the smith would instruct her in the use of her blades. The training was grueling, countless amounts of time spent on increasing her dexterity with the feather blades, learning the different forms and attacks with them. It was hard and at the end of each practice, she felt ready to pass out.

It was the time after the training that she looked forward to the most. The smith would make her hot chocolate while grumbling about the cold, then would sit her down and tell her more stories. The topics usually centered around her Faunus heritage, since the smith had decided her knowledge in the subject was lacking at best.

Night would fall, she would fly home, and the process would repeat itself. One Saturday morning, she woke up bright and early, catching the first rays of sunlight to pierce through the horizon as she flew into town. Snow covered the forest and she could make out the animal tracks in the deep snow drifts. The town was just beginning to wake up when she strolled into it. A new boat had arrived the day prior with fresh traders and goods. Usually she would explore the new wares, but not today.

This morning, she was drawn right to the smith's stall and hut, a growing sense of dread unsettling her stomach. She walked around the corner, and there was his tent. It was different than usual. His armorer supplies were packed up, bundles of fresh weapons were tied together and ready to be moved. The familiar ring of his hammer was absent. Suddenly the air seemed much colder and she pulled her coat tighter around her shoulders. Her feet seemed to have a mind of their own as they pulled her in the direction of the tent entrance.

There he sat, among boxes of things ready to be moved. His eyes were centered on two white feather shaped blades. They glinted in the candle light, the only source of illumination within the tent. His face was absent of emotions, but she could see the sad glint in his eyes. He was leaving. She had known deep down that he would have to leave eventually, but she had tried her best not to think about it.

"These are the last two feathers to your set." He said, still not taking his eyes off the feather blades. "I have taught you all the basics in their use. It is up to you to continue training." She stayed standing in the entrance, at a loss for words. He was leaving. The reality of it crashed down upon her mind all at once. He was the only person she could be around without pretending to be someone else. With him gone, her life would return to the bleak state it had been a little over a month ago. She would spend her time staying under the radar, trying to forget all that she was and replace it with a false alias.

He finally looked up at her, offering her a sad smile. "Today I board the ship and begin the journey home." She said nothing, and the silence between them stretched for an infinite amount of time. The smith stood, taking the two feather blades and pressing them into the palm of her hand. "You have learned a great deal since we first met. I still wish you would find your own people, but I understand your desire to remain here." He took her by the hand and led her to the bench, making her sit down next to him.

There on the table next to them was a small leather tube and a blue stone box. Her eyes were drawn to the box. It looked old. Runes were carved into the exterior, and the once rough edges had been worn smooth through the ages.

"I have two gifts to give you." He opened the box and pulled out a long silver needle. "You never received the mark on your eleventh birthday. I can give it to you now, if that is your desire." She glanced up at the black feather tattooed under his left eye. "It will forever mark you as one of us, and other Faunus will recognize you for what you are. The downside is it will make hiding your true identity much harder among the humans. Most will not understand the significance of the mark, but there are still quite a few who will recognize it immediately. You must choose."

Nyx didn't know what to say. The smith was right, she could list several teachers who would be able to recognize the mark at the school. This small little tattoo could be the cause of much trouble… and she honestly didn't care. She was going to try her hardest to keep her secret, but this mark just felt right. In all honesty, she couldn't begin to describe the feeling, but she knew deep down that she needed this, consequences be damned.

Nyx swallowed hard and nodded. "Yes." A hint of a smile crossed over the smith's face. He reached into the box and withdrew two vials. One was filled with a inky substance as dark as the night sky. The other was the purest of white, taking on the appearance of fresh snow.

"Black is used on the southern tribe, white on the northern tribe. While the color may be different, the mark is the same for both." He opened the white ink, dipping the long silver needle into it, and holding it to her face. "This will hurt at first, and will take a long while. Hold as still as possible.

The needle pierced her skin, causing her to wince a little. She relaxed her body, willing herself to be still. Again and again the needle punctured her skin. She kept her eyes focused on the smith as he concentrated on his work. While small, the feather pattern was incredibly complex, and took several hours. After a time, her face grew numb, and she could no longer feel the bite of the steel as it stabbed her face. Morning had come and gone, the sun resting in the center of the sky.

The smith leaned back, cleaning the blood off the needle. He placed the supplies back into the stone box and closed it before inspecting his work. She could not see the result, but he seemed proud with the result. The smith took a damp rag and lightly wiped at her face, then placed a small bandage over it.

"Keep that on for a few days." She lightly touched the bandage, wincing as her face throbbed in pain. He swatted her hand away. "Rubbing it will just irritate the skin and prolong the healing."

"Sorry… Will you come back?" There it was. The question that had been plaguing her all morning was finally in the open. The smith looked away, lost in thought or memory. Once more silence filled the tent. Nyx began to fidget, her cheek itching something awful, but it was nothing compared to her desire to know his answer.

"I don't know. I have been away from my family for several months. I don't plan on traveling for a long while once I return. It is always a possibility I guess, but I can't make any promises. I can however give you something better." He reached for the leather tube, and removed one of the end caps, pulling out its contents. Within was an old rolled piece of parchment. The smith spread it out across the table, showing her a map of the southern deserts.

"This shows the location of my tribe. If you ever are in the area, we would welcome you with open arms." He flipped over the map, showing another. This one was of the northern mountains. "This was the last recorded location of the tribe your family came from. I don't know if it is still there…" He left the rest unspoken. When her family had left the tribe, the local human population had turned violent. She could return and find everything well and good… or she could return to find broken and burnt ruins of a once peaceful people.

The smith stood and strode out of the tent, carrying the last possessions left in the tent. Crew members of the ship had come and taken his belongings to the ship while she was getting her mark. The smith shrugged the pack over his shoulder and wrapped her in a tight embrace. His strong arms blocked the outside world from view and Nyx couldn't help but remember the hug her father had given her in the dream.

"Thank you for everything." She whispered into his chest, giving him one final squeeze. He released her and took a step back, smiling.

"Be safe hatchling." With those three simple words, he turned around and walked out of her life forever.


	12. Chapter 12

Nyx

Chapter 12

Nyx was depressed. This was painfully obvious to her roommates, as she had refused to leave her bed for three days now. At first, the girls had thought Nyx had come down with a cold or something. This was quickly dismissed with her lack of fever or cold symptoms. Nyx had given them no explanation to her current state; she had just climbed into bed and lay there, staring blankly at the ceiling. Whise would bring her food while Autumn tried to keep her up to date on the topics she was missing in class. It was useless though. The class notes were ignored and the food was left untouched. She didn't even rise to the bait when Whise mentioned she must be having boy trouble.

The morning of the fourth day, her roommates had had enough. Lyric pushed Nyx out of bed, and Whise had all but forced food down Nyx's throat. They were worried that she would get sick with her lack of consumption. She ate, the food bringing her a little out of her depression, but the heavy cloud of sadness still hung over her shoulders.

"How about we go to town? That always cheered you up. We could go to the-" Autumn began.

"I don't want to go to the market!" Nyx snapped, immediately regretting the harshness that had seeped into the words. "Um… sorry."

Lyric pulled her to her feet. "Get up! No more moping. We are going into town and getting a cappuccino, and you are going to be happy! You're starting to make me feel depressed!" A small sad smile crossed Nyx's face. Lyric was right, she had spent too much time moping about the smith's departure, and a nice coffee really did sound good. Her hand came up and touched the bandage on her cheek. Her roommates had no doubt noticed it, but refrained from asking about its origins.

The walk to the town was filled with gossip and laughter. Lyric, Whise and Autumn talked about the current events going on around the Academy. It was nice to hear them laughing and talking, even though she paid little attention to the subjects they were discussing.

Their boots crunched through the snow, leaving a trail of footprints to mark their passage. Most of the trees overhead were bare of all their leaves, except for the occasional pine. It was windy, not the best conditions for flying, but her wings twitched nether the less under her jacket. She had to be careful about moving her wings while they were covered. One wrong twitch and her feather blades would slice through the flimsy jacket as if it were paper.

She smiled feeling the small amount of added weight from the several blades attached to each wing. Each night, she had been very careful to unclip each blade and hide them in a box in her trunk. If she wasn't worried about destroying her bed, she probably would have slept in them.

The city came into view and she smiled. It looked like a winter wonderland, everything was covered in white, and people were beginning to put up holiday decorations. A snowball whizzed past her face and she flinched back, blinking.

Lyric laughed. "Earth to Nyx! We've been trying to talk to you for the last five minutes. You still alive?"

"Yeah, sorry. Just enjoying the weather." That much was true at least.

"How can you enjoy this? Its freezing!" Whise complained.

"I like the snow." She responded, eyes scanning for the coffee shop they were heading to. It was a regular haunt for their team. A cozy little place, with a fire that was always burning in the corner, to stave off the chilly weather. The barista knew each of them by name, and had their favorite drink memorized.

They walked in, and the barista called out a warm greeting. "Ah, I was wondering when I would see you four again. It's been too long. The usual?"

"Yes please, but make Nyx's extra special. She's been having a bad week." Whise told him.

He gave Nyx warm smile. "Nothing a good cup of coffee can't fix. I'll put extra cinnamon on yours." Nyx couldn't help but grin. She was passionate about three things in life; flying, weapons, and cinnamon. She could put it on just about anything, much to her roommates displeasure. For some odd reason, they thought cinnamon covered pasta was gross. Humans truly were a strange race.

She took her cappuccino, smelling the fragrant cinnamon and sighed in pure pleasure. Her roommates smirked at her while they took their seats by the fire. Nyx sat down in the deep leather backed chair, sipping at her drink and looking out the window. It had started to snow, and the window panes were frosted over at the edges. Her friends were chattering away about classes, when she became distracted. A smell tickled her nose and her eyes snapped to the entrance of the little coffee shop.

Four people had just walked into the coffee shop, laughing and talking. She knew they attended the Institute, but only knew one of them by name. Taris, the girl with black hair who had argued about Faunus attendance with the professor a few weeks ago, stood in line to get coffee.

Whise was saying something to her, but Nyx was unable to tear her attention away from the group at the counter. In the pit of her stomach, she knew something bad was about to happen. The group had just gotten their drinks and where searching for a table to sit at when it happened.

One of the guys in Taris' team stumbled as he was walking. The hot chocolate flew out of his grasp, spraying its contents over one of the girls in his team. As he fell to the ground, his arm reached out to grab something, anything to stop his fall.

His reaching fingers managed to snag the long black hair, trailing down Taris' back. He kept falling, crashing to the floor, and in his clenched fingers was the black wig Taris had been wearing.

Silence filled the café. The guy laid on the floor, staring at the wig in his hands in shock. The girl he had spilled the hot chocolate stood, silently dripping, staring wide eyed at Taris, along with everyone else in the coffee shop.

She stood there, fright plain as day on her face, as she revealed her true colors to the world. The black wig had been hiding a similar dark hair, yet this one was streaked through with bright splashes of red. Most noticeable was the two red fox ears sitting on top of her head. Sound began to slowly leech into the world. The muffled grunt of disgust reached Nyx's ears as Taris' teammate threw her wig away from him. Angry comments about allowing a Faunus into the shop echoed from several of the customers sitting around her.

Whise narrowed her eyes at the exposed Faunus, and the shop owner stepped around the barista. "We don't serve you freaks here! Get out!" Taris looked to her teammates for help, her eyes pleading, but all she found was the icy stares of her supposed friends. Tension filled the café, a subtle warning of violence that was approaching. A few of the customers stood, fists clenched, anger and disgust on their faces. Nyx watched a single tear slide down Taris' face, before she burst out of the café and disappear around the corner.

Silence once again filled the café. Customers went back to drinking their coffee, pretending that nothing ever happened. The now group of three shuffled around awkwardly, wondering if they should leave or take a seat. None of them were making any move to go after their friend. Nyx sat there, rooted in spot, heart racing. This was her dream. The exact dream that had plagued her for months. It had played out exactly how she could have imagined it, except the victim was someone else. She sat there for the rest of the morning, her cappuccino growing cold and long forgotten. She kept her eyes on the entrance, silently willing Taris to come back, to be friends once again with her teammates. To show Nyx that a Faunus could have human friends. To show Nyx that everything would be okay. Sympathy filled her for the girl. She wanted nothing more than to go find Taris, and offer her friendship, anything to make her better.

The compassion was replaced with rage, and before she knew it, Nyx was striding across the room. Her vision was filled with red as she stopped in front of the former friends of Taris. In one smooth motion, Nyx drew a dagger and slammed in into the drink one of them was reaching for. The blade pierced through the cup, pinning it to the table as the drink froze instantly due to the Everfrost. The boy snatched his hand back, and one of the girls yelped in shock, while the other boy just sat there wide eyed.

Nyx lowered her head down till it was eye level with them, a soft dangerous voice coming from her mouth. "How dare you."

The girl recovered first. "What are you-" Nyx slammed her other dagger into the table, a hairsbreadth from the girl's hand, instantly shutting her up.

"You sit here, sipping your damn coffee while Taris is out there in the cold, scared and alone." One of the boys opened his mouth to speak, but clamped his mouth shut when Nyx snapped her eyes to him. By now, all eyes in the café were focused on Nyx, but she didn't care. "So it turns out she has fox ears. You abandon her just because of that? Is this how all humans treat their friends? You disgust me." Nyx wrenched the daggers from the table and stormed out of the café.

It was still snowing, more heavily than it had been before. Nyx looked around, trying to find some tracks that might lead her after the missing Taris. The door behind her banged open and her friends emerged. "Nyx, what was that? You can't just go sticking your daggers into anything you feel like!" Whise said. Nyx ignored her; she was in no mood to deal with Whise's constant desire for good table manners at the moment. She began to walk towards the path back to the school. Every cell in her body screamed at her to go look for Taris, but she had no idea where the Faunus could have run off to. At this time, it would be best to go back to the Institute and see if she was there.

She felt so helpless. She had to do something, but had no idea what to do. A hand grabbed her shoulder, stopping her. Nyx whirled around to face whoever had interrupted her mission. Lyric stood behind her, clearly confused.

"Nyx, where are you going? I thought we were going to spend the day in town." Lyric asked.

Nyx took a deep breath. She was furious, but it wasn't at her teammates. It wouldn't due to unleash her rage against them. A thousand lies came to mind, but what spilled out of her mouth was the truth. "I'm going to look for Taris." This took all three of her friends by surprise.

"But it's snowing, I'm sure she's fine." Lyric said.

"Yeah, come on; let's just go back to the coffee shop." Autumn suggested.

"Why?" Whise said. Nyx froze at the single word that came from Whise's mouth.

"…what do you mean why?" Nyx asked softly, keeping her frustration in check.

"Why go after her? She's just a faunus." Whise said in an offhand tone.

"Whise, that's not very nice." Lyric began, but Nyx cut her off in a quiet whisper.

"Just a faunus? Is that what you really think of her?"

Whise looked taken aback. "Well of course. They're nothing but freaks that lie, cheat, and steal." Nyx clamped her mouth shut to keep from screaming at the girl. Who was she to judge an entire race? In Nyx's silence, Whise continued. "Taris obviously lied to get into the Academy, why else would she be hiding under that wig. I bet she stole the transcripts from some poor girl to get into the school." Whise said pointedly, like she usually did when she believed she was right.

Nyx narrowed her eyes at Whise, when Autumn said something that sent a spike of pain deep into her heart. "Whise has a point Nyx… I've never known a Faunus to be anything but rude and untrustworthy."

"I don't really agree that all of them are that bad…" Lyric began. Nyx looked at her, trying to hide the pleading look in her eyes. "…but she already lied to her team. What type of friend would do that?"

She was stunned. Was this who her friends really were? Were they all so prejudiced against her kind? "How can you say that?" She asked her friends. "What do you know of the Faunus to judge them like that?"

"Don't snap at us." Autumn said, getting defensive. "I'm just saying what I've seen! Have you ever had your stuff stolen right from under your nose? Well I have. It's hard not to judge them, when they steal from you!"

"They have to steal! No one will employ them!" Nyx growled at Autumn.

"Why are you defending them?" Whise yelled.

"Because no one else will!" She yelled back.

"They don't need you defending them! They deserve everything they get!" Whise was becoming red in the face.

"You are so ignorant!" Nyx didn't know whether to scream or cry at this point. Her friends were turning against her, just like in the dream.

"Leave Whise alone! She was almost kidnapped by the Faunus! Your being insensitive!" Autumn yelled.

"So you think Taris is like that? Planning on kidnapping you? Those fox ears must really bring out her evil side, huh?" Nyx responded coldly.

Lyric stepped up to Autumn's side. "Nyx, how could you defend a girl like that? She lied to her friends about something that big. That's not something you can just ignore."

"Why does it matter if she is Faunus or not? Why can't you just accept her as a person?" Her eyes began to tear up. She wanted so hard to make her friends understand the truth, to look past their prejudice.

"BECAUSE SHE ISN'T A PERSON! SHE'S AN ANIMAL!" Whise screamed, at the end of her patience. "You haven't been around them. They are horrible creatures that will do terrible things just to get money. They tried to kidnap me when I was a child! So don't you come to me and try to change my mind about them. ALL OF THEM, EVERY SINGLE ONE IS ROTTEN TO THE CORE!"

Tears streamed down Nyx's face. "AND YOU HUMANS KILLED MY MOM AND DAD!" Why couldn't they just understand her pain? "YOU DON'T SEE ME BLAMING THEIR DEATHS ON YOU!" How could they not see their words felt like a knife driven into her heart. "IT'S HUMANS LIKE YOU THAT FORCED US INTO HIDING!"

Silence filled the forest. Nyx waited for Whise to keep scream back, but no sounds met her ears. Through the tears streaming down her cheeks, Nyx could see the shock clear on her friend's faces. They stared at her uncomprehending, as if they were unable to process the words they had just heard.

Nyx's mind finally caught up with her mouth. Her eyes widened as she realized what she had just said to her roommates. She heard the words of the smith in the back of her mind. "It's not a question of if they find out, but when." It had happened, the nightmare that she had seen happen to Taris just an hour ago had happened to her. A chill ran down her spine. No, this wasn't happening. This couldn't be happening. Why couldn't she just have kept her mouth shut.

Fury began to present itself on Whise's face. Lyric looked as if Nyx had betrayed her somehow. Nyx turned to Autumn, hoping to find solace in the girl she had looked up to for so long. What she found was simply disappointment. Nyx wanted to throw herself at their feet and beg forgiveness.

"How are we supposed to trust you now?" Autumn whispered. Nyx froze, wide eyed, staring at her former friends. Had they really just asked that? It felt as if the wind had been knocked out of her, and Nyx grabbed at her chest, holding it in pain from the betrayal she was facing.

Autumn, Whise and Lyric just stood there, awaiting her answer. What could she tell them? It was clear they had already made up their mind about her. She was nothing but a filthy Faunus, unfit for friendship, untrustworthy, worse than dirt. She was no longer Nyx in their eyes, but a creature that had falsified her way into their lives. How could they trust her when everything they knew about her was a lie? They weren't friends with Nyx, they were friends with the girl she had been pretending to be.

She took a step back, and their eyes following her, judging her. They wanted an answer, so she responded in the only way she knew. She ran. Trees passed her in a blur, whether it was due to her speed or her tears, she didn't know. Bushes grabbed at her clothes, ripping them, and low branches cut up her face, but still she ran. She ran from the lies, the nightmares, and the strife that had plagued her life.

Nothing followed her through the forest. No sounds of footsteps giving chase or voices calling out to her. She ran and ran, till her lungs couldn't keep up and her heart pounded in her chest. She ran till her legs went numb and still she ran. Her only companion was the silence of the forest.

Note from the Author:

Just want to give thanks to all the people who have read this. Leave a comment if you please!


	13. Chapter 13

Nyx

Chapter 13

Schk. Schk. Schk. Autumn awoke to a strange sound that sent shivers down her spine. Schk. Schk. Schk. She sat up in her bed, trying to identify the source of the sound. Schk. Schk. Schk. It was the sound of a stone being dragged across a blade. Schk. Schk. Schk.

Her eyes snapped to Whise, who was sitting on her bed, sharpening the blades on her bow. The girl had a rather curious weapon. It was a recurve bow, but had a thin blade in the front of it, running down its entire length. Most students had a weapon that was capable of ranged attacks as well as close combat, and with advances in technology, the majority relied on some sort of weapon that used gun powder for propulsion. Whise enjoyed the classics however, keeping a traditional bow design. Now that Autumn thought about it, the only students she knew personally who didn't use a gun of some sort were Whise and Ny- and that girl she used to know.

Her eyes glanced over to where their former friend used to sleep. Her bed was empty, as it had been for the past three days. Nyx never came back after the argument, and Autumn wasn't sure whether that was a good or bad thing. In all honesty, she was a bit worried about Nyx, but her mind couldn't help but think about the younger girl's betrayal. Autumn didn't consider herself a racist person, but every time she had given a faunus a chance, it had backfired.

There was no sugar coating it. Nyx had lied to them. She had hid her true self from them from the very beginning. If she had been lying about this for so long, what else had she lied about?

Schk. Schk. Schk. The sharpening continued. Whise had been in a poor mood since that day, and she was quite open that Nyx was to blame. The girl was furious at her. Whise had never been a friend to the faunus, and finding out about Nyx was like a slap in the face. Some part of Autumn reasoned that Nyx was scared to come out, since she knew of Whise's hatred of her race, but Autumn quickly buried that feeling. She had trouble sympathizing with the missing girl, still feeling the sting of betrayal.

The wind howled outside their windows. Yesterday a blizzard had moved in, and it had been snowing since. This was not the fluffy white flakes that brought dreams of snow angels and sledding. This was the thick, stinging flakes that pummeled against your body and made your cheeks flush. This was a dangerous storm, with the temperatures dropping well below freezing and patches of ice creeping up to trip people. It was a horrible storm to be caught in… and Nyx was probably trapped in it.

Realization hit Autumn like a train car. Didn't the girl said she had grown up in a cardboard box in an ally? She had no family to speak of, that Autumn was certain was true. Was Nyx huddling in some alleyway? Was she using some sodden piece of cardboard as a meager piece of protection against the elements? Autumn was mad at Nyx, but no one deserved to be stuck out in this.

Autumn voiced her concerns to Whise, and the response was just what she expected. "I could care less about that… that thing! And why are you worrying? Animals live outside, Autumn. I'm sure she is just peachy." Whise said, never taking her eyes off the whetstone as it scraped against the metal.

"She isn't an animal!" Autumn snapped. "She is a-" Autumn sighed in defeat. She wasn't quite sure what Nyx was. "Sorry... Maybe you're right. Maybe she is just fine out there… I don't know that much about the faunus…"

"There isn't that much to know about them." Whise replied, finishing up on her weapon. It gleamed a dull silver in the candle light. "After class, we should get rid of all her stuff. No sense keeping it around.

Autumn froze, the implication of Whise's words only partially sinking in. "But… why? We can't just throw it away, she will be-"

"She will be nothing. Autumn you don't seem to get it. Nyx isn't coming back. She isn't human. This is not a school for animals! And I bet you most of her stuff is stolen in the first place!

Autumn was about to respond when a small voice interrupted her. "What stuff? She doesn't have anything." Lyric said from her top bunk. Their arguing must have woken up the poor girl. Her words rang true though. Autumn cast her gaze around the room. The three girl's belongings dominated such a large portion of space within the room; they never noticed Nyx's lack of possessions. Now that she thought about it, the only things Nyx really owned were a few pairs of clothes and those brand new daggers of hers.

"We should get ready to go to class. Today is live-weapons training." Lyric said, hopping off the bed and getting ready. Autumn winced, she these days. Usually they would train with blunted weapons, keeping injuries down to a minimum, but not on these days. Once a month, they would use their actual weapons. The weapons that had razor sharp blades, the weapons that were imbued with Phonenixfire and Everfrost, the weapons that had high caliber guns built into them. It was all very dangerous, and while they worked hard to prevent injury, it was common to hear of severe injuries and maiming that happen on these days.

As much as she hated live-weapons days, it was nice to be able to get her mind off Nyx. She didn't know why, but the thought of swinging a wickedly sharp piece of metal at someone made her feel a lot better. Autumn froze. Did she really just think that? She mentally admonished herself. "I need a coffee." She grumbled. This was going to be a long day.

Several miles away, the wind howled, throwing thick sheets of snow through the air. The trees bent and creaked under the force of the blizzard. In one such tree, a girl huddled. The wind whipped her hair around her face, hiding most of her features from the world. If an onlooker was to pass below, they wouldn't be able to make out anything spectacular about the girl, besides the fact that she was in a tree in the middle of a blizzard. Although the possibility of someone walking under her tree was slim to none. She had been in this tree for the last three days. Her face had a haunted look to it, most likely from the lack of food she had consumed as of late. Her clothes were ragged and on the verge of falling apart. Everything about her looked worn and broken, except for three things that shone like a beacon in middle of the blizzard.

Two pairs of ice cold blue eyes pierced through the swirling mass of blonde hair, and below the left eye was a small tattoo of a feather, drawn in a glittering silver ink. She sat there, on a tree branch a hundred feet in the air. Her eyes stared straight forward unblinking, looking right in the direction of her school.

Nyx was mad. The intensity of her eyes was testament to that, and this was accented by her real eye color no longer hidden behind the false contact lenses. The wind howled around her, yet she didn't notice. The snow soaked into her clothes, yet she didn't notice. Nature threw everything it had at her, yet she didn't notice. Her attention was focused on the memory of her so called friends shunning her.

Whise had been furious. Why? What gave her the right? She was almost kidnapped at a young age, big deal. It was about time she got over it. Nyx watched humans kill her family, yet she didn't go around hating everything that didn't have Faunus blood.

Lyric had felt betrayed? Why? How was keeping her faunus secret a betrayal? Everyone had their secrets, did it really matter that hers was a little more extreme than most? What did she expect? Why did she have to let them know she was Faunus? Did it really make that big of a difference?

Autumn. She was the source of Nyx's anger. The girl that Nyx had looked up to for so long, had simply acted disappointed. What was she disappointed about? Was the single strand of animal DNA in Nyx a feasible thing to be disappointed in? And those words. "How are we supposed to trust you now?" The words had been hit her like a sledge hammer. At the time, she felt so sorry, wanting nothing more than to beg for forgiveness. Now? Not so much.

The anger felt good, a welcome change from the sorrow that had plagued her soul the previous two days. It sent heat through her body, helping her cope with the freezing temperatures swirling around her. That first night, she had thought about just picking a direction and flying, never to look back, but one thing had stopped her. The leather tube, containing the map to her people, was still residing in her room. It was precious to her, the only life line she had to her people. That made the decision obvious, she would have to go back. That was the hard thing, going back. Nyx had spent the last two days determining how she would go back. Would she pretend nothing happened, hoping her friends kept her secret to herself? Or would she crawl back, begging forgiveness. The more she thought about it, the madder she got. What did she have to apologize for? The smith had told her to embrace her faunus heritage when her secret was revealed, and he was right. She was proud of whom she was, and three petty girls discovering her secret would not change that in the slightest.

She considered how she would leave, because leave she must. Faunus didn't go to the Institute. There wasn't a specific rule banning Faunus, more like an unwritten agreement. She thought about sneaking to her room and just getting the map, but something haltered those thoughts. The memory of her roommates reactions to discovering her Faunus heritage. It enraged her, infuriated her… challenged her. Who were they to judge her so? What made these humans better than her? Nothing. They would want her out of the school, but Nyx wanted to stay, but for different reasons than originally.

When she had first joined, she had crawled in, half-starved and craving companionship. Now it was different. She could care less about friends or family. They would want her to leave, and so her sole reason for staying was to further infuriate them. Some would try to bully her into going, but she wasn't going anywhere without a fight.

She would not return, pretending to be her alternate personality. Nyx was going to storm through those front doors, chin held high, and eyes blazing. No more pretending to be weak. No more holding back to stay anonymous. She didn't know how many of them knew she was a Faunus, and she didn't care. By the end of the day, she was going to make damn well sure that every single stupid human in that school knew her true nature. The old Nyx they thought they knew was dead. It was time for them to know who she really was.

Nyx took a single step off the branch and plummeted to the forest floor below. It was time for change. She landed in an explosion of snow and ice. It was time for action. The wind whipped at her clothes and nipped at her heels, driving her ever onward. It was time for revolution. The snow kept falling, sometimes obscuring her sight, but never obscuring her goal. It was time to stop hiding, but mostly… it was time to fight.

**A note from Forfrysning:**

Have any corrections, ideas, or simply want to express your undying love for me? Comment below! And thanks to everyone who has commented already, I'll try to respond to all of them when I get a chance.


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